Pure and Simple
by FlowerPot21
Summary: When a killer emerges from the anals of the drug subculture in New York City, the detectives discover rage...pure and simple. EO, EK friendship, complete. next in the series: Tarnished
1. Chapter 1

Pure and Simple

Prologue

Vance's Club

Lower East Side

11:30 PM **Saturday**

Sherona Anderson had long abandoned her other girlfriends, wanting to milk the entire weekend she had of every piece of freedom it offered. Monday, there was going to be no school due to repairs so she had time to sleep it off. She felt like partying and unwinding, and hopefully, finding a suitable man to share a few more drinks with.

The club wasn't exactly the nicest, but she didn't care at the moment. It had music, drinks, and dancing.

She adjusted her chic but modest jean skirt, fixed her blouse just right and slung her jacket over her shoulders.

Sherona applied a little more makeup to her dark chocolate skin and she fixed a few stray hairs before she walked confidently up to the bar. She ordered a shot of tequila with lime and drank that down quickly, feeling a little more brave. She didn't usually do this, but tonight, she just wanted to let loose. No kid, no school, no papers to grade…this was a weekend to celebrate.

"Hi," a deep voice greeted from beside her and she turned her attentions to him.

Their dark eyes met, and Sherona felt instant attraction. The man was an Adonis: beautiful dark skin like hers, built in all the right places, sexy eyes, and he looked like an intelligent man.

"Hi," she purred.

"I'm Jeff," the man introduced himself.

"Sherona," she said.

She felt so alive in this moment, and she never felt more attractive before. After a couple more shots and some nice conversation with Jeff, she was ready to dance.

She pulled the very attractive man to the dance floor and they danced sensually: chest to chest, hip to hip. Sherona felt the rhythm of the music flow through her already lucid veins. Jeff caressed over her body, and she felt like a puddle under his touch. There was definitely something.

As they danced, they accidentally bumped into another guy on the dance floor. They didn't know how much that pissed him off.

Sherona led Jeff toward one of the many sofas and she leaned in tentatively to place a soft kiss on his inviting lips. He obliged and both of them felt tingles in their bodies.

Just when things were getting good, Jeff's pager went off and he muttered curses under his breath.

"Listen, I've got to go," he whispered.

"No," Sherona pleaded. "Please don't."

Jeff leaned in and kissed her cheek. He pulled back and slipped his business card into the breast pocket of her jacket. He caressed her through the fabric, and it made her gasp and smile.

"Give me a call, and we'll meet somewhere," Jeff offered.

Sherona pulled him into a deep kiss, and Jeff didn't resist her.

A while later, Sherona emerged from the ladies' restroom and then she plopped down onto one of the sofas. She sighed, feeling relieved, and she looked around. Jeff had already left, not without leaving her a few parting gifts. She noticed someone watching her, and she didn't really care at first, she thought it might be another lusty suitor. But when the gaze never faltered, she began to worry. She panicked when he crossed the dance floor toward her.

Sherona got up and began to run.

He felt the sweat on his brow, and he felt his fists ball up even tighter as he walked to the back exit of the club. The back was filled with smoke that filtered from the many back rooms, but he kept breathing evenly, too focused to care about the thick air. He heard the moans and screams of pleasure too, but he didn't listen. The sounds of moaning and panting hookers was nothing new to him…he lived above one.

Right now, there was no sound, no club, only his unrelenting fury.

The scent of her perfume lead him along her fleeing path. He felt like a wolf heading for the kill in the cold, dark, dank night that had befallen the city. He became even more enraged at the clicking of her heels and the jangling of her various bangles. She would not escape this.

He pushed the door open with plenty of force as he followed her frantic tracks down the alley. The only light provided was the outdoor lamps that had been turned on and they only illuminated every ten feet in front of him.

Sherona ran as fast as she could in three inch heels. She debated whether or not to stop for a second and take them off and run like hell, but she knew that he would only get that much closer to her, and do something unspeakable to her. Sherona didn't think that the night would turn out like this…she had done nothing to provoke this man. It seemed as if one look from her to him set something off inside of him…she had said nothing. She didn't even know him.

She kept running, nearing the street. The alleyway seemed especially long.

He still gave chase, his fists balling painfully tight as he gained ground on her.

Before he even knew it, he heard her scream and his hands clamped around her neck. He felt the blood pulsing in his veins as he tightened his grip on her neck and shoved her into the wall.

Sherona knew that her life was over.

He threw her to the ground and now the fury was palpable as he blacked out and let his body take over.

O-O-O

**1-6 Precinct **

SVU Squad Room

2:00 AM Saturday

Olivia Benson nursed her third cup of coffee in less than two hours as she sat back down at her desk. She rubbed the back of her neck to try and get rid of some of the tension from lack of sleep at this late hour. She was pulling an all-nighter with her partner Elliot Stabler. She knew that he didn't want to go home and she decided that two heads were better than one when finishing up reports and examining evidence from another case.

He sighed and rubbed his temples, feeling the fatigue, but resisting it. He felt guilty that he had Olivia here at the department this late with him. He tried to get her to go home, but she wouldn't hear of it, and she had stayed, stubbornly fighting sleep.

With one sip of coffee, she felt a little better.

"Liv, why don't you go home?" Elliot suggested again. "You look beat."

She sighed, sorting work that was completed neatly on her desk.

"Nope, I'm completely wired now," she quipped. "Too much caffeine."

Elliot picked up his cup and finished off the last sip before throwing it away in the trash bin.

"You know, Cragen will have my ass in the morning," he said. "It's bad enough that I stay 'til all hours of the night, but he draws the line at you staying all night."

Olivia simply waved him off.

"I'm a grown woman," she defended. "I don't need a curfew."

The scolding look in her eyes shut him up.

After a few minutes of working in silence, Elliot's cell phone rang. He picked it up and looked at the number.

"Cragen," he said as he answered. "Stabler…yes cap I'm still here…I know…."

Olivia continued to sift through paperwork and photos, waiting for the lecture that Elliot was going to deliver compliments of Cragen. She hated it when the guys went through a phase of being way too overprotective of her. If she felt she couldn't handle the job, she wouldn't do it.

Elliot hung up.

Here it comes, Olivia thought to herself, rolling her eyes.

"The body of a black woman was found in an alley behind Vance's Club," Elliot explained.

Olivia looked up at him.

"And I thought we were the only ones still awake at this hour," she sighed bitterly as she got up and grabbed her coat.

"You wanna drive?" Elliot asked as he shrugged on his coat.

Olivia pushed her longer hair behind her ear. "Why?"

"You're the one that's wired," he grinned.

He tossed her the keys and they headed out.

The drive to the lower east side was quiet and uneventful. It began to rain as they headed to the club. Elliot could see the look of relief on Olivia's face the moment it began to pour. Of all things, Olivia liked the rain. Perhaps it was a sign for her of sorts; something left over from her childhood that gave her hope. He didn't know, as long as she was able to smile, if only for a second.

They made it to the sleazy looking club, which had been closed for the night. They saw the ambulance and two cruisers with a small crowd of people gathered around. Olivia pulled the hood on her jacket over her head before going out and Elliot pulled a cap out of the glove compartment.

Both detectives flashed their badges as they entered the crime scene.

"Jesus," Elliot hissed when he saw the body of the young woman.

Olivia was taken aback at the gruesome sight before her.

The woman's skirt and panties had been pulled down around her ankles, her blouse was still in tact, her face was badly disfigured, her hair bloodied, and from the looks of it, she had been raped.

Dr. Warner waved the detectives over and she pulled her hood further over her head.

"Victim's name was Sherona Anderson," she began. "Twenty three, grade school teacher at P.S. 163. The way things look right now, the killer got her with his bare hands. No stab wounds, no puncture wounds, no evidence of drugging. One single fatal blow killed her, and to make things worse, she was sodomized post mortem. I hope you guys catch this sick bastard."

"Poor woman," Olivia said as she crouched down near the body. "Hey, her ankle is kinda bruised."

"She probably tried to make a run for it in those heels," Elliot surmised. "She might have strained it before the perp caught up with her."

"Well, the rain washed away any trace for CSU," Olivia sighed. "And that just makes our job that much harder."

An officer approached them.

"Hey," he said. "I've got the bar tender and the owner waiting."

Olivia and Elliot approached the bar tender and the owner huddled under a huge umbrella.

"Detectives Benson and Stabler," Olivia introduced them. "We need to ask you a few questions."

"Yeah sure, I'm Damien Morton" the owner introduced himself. "But I don't know what I can tell you. I've been in my office for hours."

"Well, sometimes the littlest detail makes the biggest difference," Elliot said.

The owner sighed heavily.

"I didn't hear anything out of the ordinary," he said. "The music's playin' loud, people are screaming and carrying on having a good time…"

"Do you have security cameras?" Olivia asked.

"Listen doll, I'm on a tight budget," the pudgy man said. He rubbed his goatee. "I've got bill collectors on my ass, the health department chewing on my ass, code compliance papers. I can't help you."

With that, Damien walked off, leaving the bar tender.

"What's your name?" Olivia asked.

The guy looked no older than twenty years old, he was well toned, looked like a bad boy, he had spiked highlighted hair and he looked like he definitely saw something go down.

"Why don't you tell me yours and we'll work something out?" The guy directed at Olivia, making her roll her eyes.

"Why don't we bring you in as a suspect and we'll work something out with Rikers?" Elliot spat.

The guy took his attentions away from Olivia and looked at Elliot.

"The name's Rick," he said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Well, Rick," Elliot began. "Did you see Sherona leave with anybody?"

Rick looked up in thought.

"Nope," he sighed. "Tonight was very wild, very busy. I mean, I saw her come up to the bar and down a few shots before going out onto the dance floor, but after that, I didn't give her a second thought."

Both detectives nodded and Rick took off.

"Well, that wasn't very productive," Olivia huffed. "And I hate being called 'doll' and why was I propositioned?"

"Hey, you're a beautiful woman Liv," Elliot said matter-of-factly.

She glared at him as he began to grin.

"All that aside," he continued. "Not only was this unproductive, but the rain gave the killer a head start."

Olivia sighed as they got in the car.

"Let the games begin."


	2. Chapter 2

Pure and Simple

Chapter One

Elliot Stabler's Home

Queens

3:30 AM Saturday

He felt tremors of pain reverberate through his entire body as he entered his empty home. The silence in the house reminded him of how lost he really was. There were so many times when he felt like crying, but he held it in because of his pride. He had to stay strong, but what for? He realized that it was absolutely okay to cry, to feel something. He felt like he was walking in the dark, shouting, but with no sound escaping, no one to hear, a safe place not too far away, yet so far.

Elliot found himself in a battle against himself, and it became harder and harder for him to face what was happening around him.

He wouldn't call it depression, loneliness was more like it, and he didn't know why he felt loneliness when he had four other people that cared about him at work. They were all concerned, and he knew deep down in his heart of hearts that they knew about his emotional battle. They frequently asked if he was okay, if there was anything that he needed…he'd always say that everything's fine, fearing that if he said anything for his own sake, they'd be disappointed in him, or end up blaming themselves. He felt ashamed at these feelings because he was supposed to be the logical one, the person that understood things. But this just hit so close to home, that he was shaken. He was afraid of facing those hidden things buried away in the back of his mind; all those unconscious things that contributed to the break up of his marriage…his withdrawal from the woman he pledged his life to, promised to help in her time of need, and not being there for his children like he should have been. Kathy had made him very much aware of the hurt she saw in their eyes when he missed trivial things, like appointments, plays, game nights, even a family dinner. He'd chosen work over them for twenty years and Kathy couldn't stand to look at her children's disappointed faces nor hers any longer. 'Time to end it,' she had said calmly, quietly.

Elliot loosened his tie as he looked at a picture of his family. It had been taken a few years ago, when things were good, and they were all smiling. He smiled faintly at the picture, wishing that things were different. Unfortunately for him, and so many other men in his predicament, they couldn't travel back in time, they could only go forward, and pray to God that things would work out in their favor, giving them a second chance to start anew.

That was what Elliot was afraid of; starting over because he didn't know where to begin, or what the future would bring. He was afraid of what kinds of things he would face head on. All he wanted to do was see his children whenever he wanted. He didn't wish to be back together with Kathy. Reconciliation was out of the question for both of them. Kathy wanted to just detach herself from him, but promised that he would be able to see their children frequently.

God, his children. His Achilles heel.

He was so afraid that night when he came home to an empty house. Not seeing his children or hearing them scared him to death. Then Kathy called.

Two months had brought him here, alone in the house that he and Kathy built their life in, their children torn to pieces over whose side to be on in this, and filing for divorce.

He'd gone through a gauntlet of emotions: anger, fear, sadness, confusion. Now, with no feelings left, he just felt numb. He'd worked cases at work with little or no emotion and it scared him because he was supposed to be objective. He cared about the victims, but the cases didn't get to him as much as they used to.

Kathy held no malice toward him, and she didn't turn their kids against him.

Olivia was not taking this very well either, and he could see the hurt in her eyes when he didn't want to tell her what was going on.

He was pushing away the two women in his life that cared deeply for him. Olivia had a place in his heart too, and Elliot discovered that he couldn't have the best of both worlds. He could vent to Olivia because he knew that she could handle the details, handle the anger because she reflected those feelings. With Kathy, things were so much different: she was already sensitive to begin with; Elliot thought he was protecting his family from the harsh realities of the world.

He got a rude awakening.

The only things that were helping him keep his sanity were his children, Olivia and the job.

As long as he had those three vital things, he could survive.

Elliot didn't have much of an appetite, so he just went ahead and took a shower. He only had about four hours to get some sleep before he had to go to get back to work. The Sherona Anderson case was priority and he knew that he wouldn't get much sleep for the next few days.

He put on a new suit and then headed out again.

O-O-O

1-6 Precinct

SVU Squad Room

8:00 AM

Munch and Fin were already seated at their desks waiting on their assignment and Olivia was emerging from the crib, looking more tired than before. She didn't go home; instead, she used the showers at the precinct and she already had an extra change of clothes handy. She ate a meager meal of watery oatmeal and had a coke and a cup of coffee. She felt a little better, but a good night's sleep would have done her some good.

She yawned daintily before sitting down at her desk. Working on borrowed time was not good. They had an extremely violent killer on their hands and that wasn't good at all.

"Ah, nice to see you sleeping beauty," Fin joked.

Olivia scowled at him through narrowed eyes.

"Hey, don't look at me like that," he chuckled.

"Fin," she groaned.

Just then, Elliot walked in and that's when Cragen emerged from his office.

"Okay people," he said. "Sorry for the early hour, but this case can't wait another minute. The rain gave the perp a head start. Any updates?"

Olivia picked up the phone when it rang.

"Benson," she chimed. "Okay…thanks."

She hung up, looking relieved.

"What've you got?" Elliot asked.

"That was CSU," she explained. "They found a business card in Sherona Anderson's jacket pocket when they picked up her clothes from the hospital. One of their guys is bringing it up now."

"Alright, Olivia, Elliot, trace that number, Munch, Fin, contact any close relatives, friends, old boyfriends and the like," Cragen ordered. "Head out."

As Munch and Fin headed out, Olivia and Elliot stayed behind to wait for the business card. Elliot poured coffee for them.

"Here you go Liv," Elliot said, putting the cup on her desk. "You could use a cup."

"You and me both," she sighed. She sat up straight in her chair and began to pull her hair back. She pondered for a second if she should get her hair cut again. "Why do I get the feeling that there's going to be more to this case than meets the eye?"

Elliot leaned back in his chair and shook his head.

"Because that's always the case," he said. "But this may be cut and dry. I mean, Sherona was a school teacher for God's sake. She probably didn't see this coming. She was just out having a good time."

Olivia nodded her agreement as she sipped at the bitter coffee. She grimaced, thinking that it needed more sugar.

After a couple of more minutes, Ben from CSU approached them with the business card in a small plastic evidence bag.

"Thanks," Olivia said, looking at the name. "Jeff Richardson, of Geiger, Knoll and Associates 757-9140."

Elliot was already up out of his chair and ready to go.

"Let's pay them a visit."

Geiger, Knoll & Associates

Financial District

9:00 AM Saturday

Olivia and Elliot walked through the door of the fifth floor office and found them selves in the midst of hustle and bustle. Geiger, Knoll & Associates was a huge advertising company that would soon be linked to several other major advertising companies in a worldwide network. And, as the detective found out, that was going to happen in just under thirty minutes.

"Don't we have great timing?" Elliot quipped.

Olivia just gave him a ghost of a grin as they approached the front desk. There was a mousy looking receptionist with impossibly bright red hair that was pulled back in a tight bun. She had on a heavy sweater and a blue pinstripe skirt with black heels. She transferred paperwork from one pile to another and was frantically taking phone calls.

"I hope you two have appointments," the receptionist said rudely as she looked up at the detectives.

They both flashed their badges and that gave her a wake up call.

"How may I help you detectives?" She asked.

"Is there Jeff Richardson here this morning?" Olivia asked.

"Yes," the receptionist said. "Follow me."

Elliot and Olivia followed the young woman down a long hallway, dodging people scrambling with information and reports, and most of all the people in the office were chattering away on cell phones.

They finally reached the office of the suave businessman. He was grinning devilishly about something and he was tossing a mini basketball into the air. When Jeff saw the intruders in his office, he dismissed his caller.

"Yeah, I'll talk to you in a few," he said before hanging up his earpiece. "I'm sorry, have we met before?"

"I'm Detective Stabler, this is my partner Detective Benson," Elliot introduced.

"Detectives?" Jeff asked, surprised. "Look, you've got the wrong brother whatever it is."

"We're just here to ask you a few questions," Olivia explained, pulling out the small evidence bag. "We found your business card in the jacket pocket of Sherona Anderson."

"Oh, yeah, I know her," Jeff said. "What? Is something wrong?"

"Well, Sherona's dead," Elliot informed the man bluntly.

Jeff felt his heart skip a beat.

"What happened?" He asked.

"Mr. Richardson, were you the last person to see Sherona?" Olivia asked.

"Yeah," Jeff answered, walking over to his desk and leaning against it. "We talked, had a few drinks, danced…"

Elliot clasped his hands behind his back, knowing that there was more to the story.

Jeff sighed and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Okay, listen, Sherona was gorgeous," he explained. "So fine. I know this sounds crazy, but there was something between us, you know? And to answer your next question, yes, we had sex. We went into the back, we uh…you know, nothing freaky, and then I told her to give me a call, and I left. She was just fine, I swear it."

Sensing the guy was telling the truth, the detectives thanked Jeff for his time.

Olivia rubbed away the beginnings of a headache.

"Why is this case going nowhere?" She asked as they boarded the elevator.

"Everything so far is pretty innocuous," Elliot observed. "Until the M.E. tells us anything probative, we've got nothing."

"I hope that Munch and Fin are having better luck than we are right now," Olivia commented.

Sherona Anderson's Apartment

South Side

10:15 AM

Munch and Fin made their way down the hallway to apartment 238. When they confirmed the address, they knocked on the door. After a few seconds of waiting, the door opened and they saw a little girl. She looked no more than five years old. She had on jeans and a sweater and her hair was put up into a ponytail.

"Hi," Fin said in a fatherly tone of voice. "Who are you?"

"India," the little girl said quietly.

"Is there a grown up in there we can talk to?" Munch asked.

"Grandma!" India yelled as she ran into the apartment.

An older woman who looked like she had been washing dishes because she was wiping her hands off on her dress stepped up to the door. She had short reddish brown hair that had a small streak of gray here and there. She didn't look old enough to be a grandmother, but she was somebody's mother.

"Yes?" She asked, putting her hands on her hips. "Who are you?"

"I'm detective Munch, this is my partner Fin," Munch introduced. "Mind if we come in and ask you a few questions?"

The woman sighed and turned a second.

"India, why don't you go into the kitchen and help yourself to a snack?" The grandmother offered the little girl.

"Okay," India said and she ran to the back.

The woman stepped outside the apartment and closed the door.

"I'm Helen Anderson," the woman introduced herself. "Are you here about my daughter?"

"Yes ma'am," Fin answered. "I'm sorry Ms. Anderson, but Sherona was found dead earlier this morning outside a bar."

Helen looked away, tears filling in her eyes.

"What happened?" She asked.

"That's what we're trying to find out ma'am," Munch said. "Ms. Anderson, do you know anyone that held a grudge against Sherona?"

"No," Helen said in frustration. "Sherona was a good woman, a wonderful mother. She would never do anything to hurt anybody. The child is wound so tightly. Her friends have to practically beg her to go out and treat herself to a good time."

"Did she come home last night?" Fin asked.

"Only for a second, around seven thirty," Helen explained. "Sherona stayed late after school to tutor some students, then she went back to her classroom to grade some papers. She came home and had dinner with me and India, changed clothes, then left. She told us that she would catch a cab home."

Fin wrote the information down as Munch asked the questions.

"Ms. Anderson, has Sherona been acting strange lately?" He asked the grieving woman. "Has she mentioned any fears, expressed any paranoia?"

"No, like I said, Sherona was a very routine woman," Helen explained. "Going out last night was not something she did on a regular basis."

"Your daughter was raped," Munch said. "Has she met anybody new? Been dating?"

"No, no, no!" Helen hissed. "Sherona wasn't like that! The one night she does something for herself, she gets murdered! Sherona didn't have any enemies, she was a wonderful person! I want you to catch the bastard that took my daughter's life. And don't come back to my doorstep until you do."

With that, Helen wiped her tears and went back inside her apartment.

Munch and Fin headed down the hallway, knowing that this would be a hard case.

"So basically, from the sound of things, this guy's random," Fin said. "I mean, Sherona's squeaky clean."

1-6 Precinct

SVU Squad Room

12:00 PM

"Is it lunch time already?" Olivia asked as Munch and Fin came into the squad room bearing food.

Fin handed out bags for everyone.

"We got the usual for you two," Munch said. "Olivia, we got you the pastrami and Elliot, we got you the meatball."

"Thanks," Olivia said as she plopped down into her chair and began to eat some of her French fries. "So, how did it go with the relatives?"

Fin spoke up from the coffee station.

"We talked to the mother," he explained. "Ms. Helen Anderson. She says that Sherona was a very routine woman, didn't go out much. Dedicated teacher and mother."

"She's got a kid?" Elliot asked.

"Yeah, a daughter," Fin continued. "About five or six years old. Her name is India."

"So basically, we've got a woman who doesn't get out much, who's got nothing on her, and she's targeted for rape?" Olivia pondered. "Something's not adding up."

"You want the victim to have something suspicious about her?" Munch asked before biting into his Philly cheese steak sandwich.

"No," Olivia said, taking a sip of soda. "All I'm saying is that this is a little too textbook. I mean, we've got an attractive classy looking twenty three year old black woman who went out for a good time for herself, and she goes to the sleaziest, shittiest looking place in the whole damn city and boom, she ends up in a back alley with her head smashed in and raped? It doesn't make any fucking sense."

Munch grinned.

"I love it when she talks dirty, don't you?" He quipped.

"Yeah, she's pretty hot when she's got a potty mouth," Elliot chuckled.

"Hello, I'm right here," Olivia said, agitated. "Sorry, I'm just frustrated that this is going nowhere."

"Yeah, and the guy Sherona was with was clean too," Elliot mentioned. "Says they met, drank, danced, had sex and he left."

"Yeah, sounds like the typical night on the town for a guy," Fin commented. "So what next?"

Cragen stepped out of his office.

"We got another victim," he announced. "Elliot, Olivia, the coroner just called. She wants you at the morgue ASAP."

The detectives collectively lost their appetites as they prepared to get back to work.


	3. Chapter 3

Pure and Simple

Chapter Two

Dr. Warner's Office

Morgue

12:30 PM Saturday

Elliot and Olivia walked through the doors of the morgue and immediately, their eyes beheld the body of young Sherona Anderson. Dr. Warner had already done the full autopsy, and she emerged from the back with her report in hand.

She looked upon Sherona's body, and cast a sad look at the young woman.

"So sad," she muttered before she approached the detectives with information. "Well, cause of death was a blow to the head. Her skull was cracked in several places, and most of her front teeth were broken. Several cheek and jawbone fractures, her nose broken. The bastard did a number on this poor girl."

"At about what time would you say she died?" Olivia asked.

"Most likely within minutes of the initial attack," Warner estimated. "As far as the hour, I'd say around one thirty."

"Did you do an assault kit?" Elliot asked.

Warner cast him a grave look.

"Well, I was going to save this for last, but I may as well inform you," Warner said, opening up the file. "Sherona wasn't sodomized. She had some inflammation around the anal area, but there was no evidence of deep penetration from sexual contact."

Olivia and Elliot looked at each other, stunned and angry.

"Her skirt and panties were bunched around her ankles," Olivia pointed out. "If she wasn't sodomized, then what the hell did he do to her?"

"After I did the rape kit, I sent a blood sample to tox to screen for any evidence of drugging," she explained slowly. "The results came back positive for cocaine."

"Cocaine?" Olivia asked.

"That's not all," Warner continued. "I found evidence of cocaine in the rectal area, and according to tox, the cocaine was ninety five percent pure."

"Wait, hold on a second," Elliot broke in. "What are you saying? Sherona was a mule?"

"All I know is that with this grade of cocaine, Sherona must have crossed somebody," Warner said.

Olivia and Elliot were both stunned at the new development.

"Well, I guess Sherona wasn't as innocent as we made her out to be," Elliot said. "Looks like it's time to pay mom another visit."

****

Sherona Anderson's Apartment

South Side

1:45 PM

Elliot and Olivia knocked on the door to Sherona's apartment. They both felt badly that they had to visit the mother again after what Munch and Fin told them from earlier in the morning. But in order for them to catch Sherona's killer, they had to get the facts straight in order to know which path to follow and what decisions to make.

Helen was in the living room watching cartoons with her granddaughter when she heard a knock on the door. Irritated at the disturbance, she huffed a breath and went over to the door. She looked through the peephole and saw two people that were not familiar to her.

She opened the door as far as the latch would allow.

"Yes?" She asked.

"Hi, are you Ms. Anderson?" Elliot asked.

"Yes, what do you want?" Helen inquired.

"I'm Detective Stabler, this is my partner Detective Benson," Elliot introduced. "We're sorry to bother you but-"

"No, I've already talked to you people," she said defensively. "Instead of harassing me, why don't you go find the person that killed my daughter."

"Ma'am, we understand your frustration, but in order for us to catch the person who did this, we need the truth," Olivia said in a compassionate tone. "We're sorry for you loss, and with your help, we can get this guy off the streets."

Sensing Helen's calm, the detectives implied that they had her approval.

"Alright," Helen resigned. "Just let me get my granddaughter into her room and we can talk."

Helen allowed Olivia and Elliot into her home.

India stood up and she looked at the detectives with wide brown eyes. Olivia was immediately taken with the little girl.

"Hi," Olivia greeted the little girl with a smile. "What's your name?"

"India."

"That's a pretty name," Olivia commented the little girl. "I'm Olivia and this is my partner Elliot."

India grinned a little before she let it fade.

"Did you find my mommy?" The little girl asked.

Helen intercepted before the conversation went any further. She scooted India into the bedroom they shared.

"India, grandma has to go talk to Olivia and Elliot for a little bit," she said softly to the little girl. "Why don't you get ready for a nap?"

India was a quiet little girl. She was very much aware of her surroundings most of the time, and she was smarter than most five year olds. She loved her mother very much, and she was close. Not seeing her mother for a day scared her a bit; she knew that her mother had gone to a party last night, but she should have been home right now.

Parties don't last that long, India thought to herself. Mommy would get sleepy.

"When is mommy coming home grandma?" She asked, making Helen's eyes water.

Helen placed a hand on the little girl's cheek.

"Get ready for a nap you," she chuckled slightly.

Elliot and Olivia sat on the couch, patiently waiting for Helen's return.

"Cute little girl," Olivia commented. "So pretty."

"Yeah, she is a beauty," Elliot agreed, looking at a picture of the family.

Helen emerged from the back and she sat across from the detectives in an arm chair.

"What do you need, detectives?" Helen asked.

"Ms. Anderson, has your daughter been acting strange, lately?" Elliot began.

"Like I told the other two detectives here earlier," Helen huffed. "Sherona was just fine."

"Ma'am, we spoke with our coroner," Olivia began slowly. "Cocaine was found in her system."

Helen's face registered shock, then she sighed and looked away. She had to face what she knew in her heart about her daughter.

"I had a feeling that she was taking something, I just didn't think it was that," she sighed as she got up and went over to her window. "Sherona's been dealing with depression since she was fourteen. After her daddy just up and left us one day, she just withdrew further into herself. Before I knew it, she was violent, threatening to hurt herself…she stayed a little while at the hospital, and she's learned how to manage and live with it. But it got worse when she had India. She was eighteen when she got pregnant with India."

"Ms. Anderson, has your daughter ever mentioned any unfamiliar names, or places?" Elliot asked.

"No," Helen said. "Sherona was a very private person. You have to understand what she went through on a daily basis. Not knowing what's going to set her off, unsure if she'll get up out of the bed in the morning. I told her to take her medication, but she's typical: when she feels better, she stops taking them and goes months without refills. She'd stop teaching for months at a time. P.S. 123 is her third school."

"Did Sherona have any close friends, people that she really trusted?" Olivia asked.

"She has two from the school," Helen answered. "Margaret and Yvonne. They teach fifth grade. They go out for lunch sometimes, but I wouldn't call them her best friends. She did trust them with India though."

Olivia nodded and jotted down the names.

"Last names?" Olivia asked, and Helen shook her head and shrugged.

"When you find who did this to her, I want to see his face," Helen requested. "And then I want you to make him pay."

Elliot only nodded as he and Olivia let themselves out.

They headed down the hallway to the elevator.

As they rode the elevator down to the first floor, Olivia looked over to Elliot, who looked deep in thought over something.

"You're unusually quiet today," Olivia commented.

He sighed and shook his head.

"I'm just thinking about my kids," he began. "I mean, how they're dealing with the separation and all."

"El, I think you underestimate your kids," Olivia grinned. "They'll be alright. You're a great father, Elliot. Kathy's a great mother. They love you both."

Elliot sighed.

"Hey, do you want to come over for dinner tomorrow evening?" Elliot offered. "Maureen's home this weekend from school and she wants to have a little get together tomorrow and cook."

"Um, sure," Olivia said, surprised by the invitation. "I guess. Are you sure that I won't be interfering or anything?"

"No," Elliot insisted. "Kathy's dropping the kids off tomorrow. She's going to stay for little while. It'll be nice for her to have a little girl talk and some adult stimulation. She told me that the kids have been running her ragged this week."

Olivia still felt slightly bothered at the dynamics going on with Elliot and Kathy. They seemed like the perfect couple, at least from her perspective, but who knew that a twenty year marriage would come down to this? As long as Kathy didn't keep Elliot away from his kids, Olivia surmised that things would always stay civil between them. Elliot loved Kathy fiercely and he loved his kids that much more.

She felt awkward about dinner because she knew she'd have to face Kathy.

They walked out into the bright sunlight, and Olivia bitterly thought: how ironic, it's a beautiful day and there's a sadistic killer on the loose. Sometimes Olivia wondered why she did this job; she knew deep down that really, she didn't know anything else. Her whole life she watched as her mother struggled with the daily pain from being raped…from having her. Olivia still remembered her mother's pained face every time she looked at her, and part of her knew that her mother's memory inspired her to keep going. To be aware, to help people in need, and to not become a victim herself.

Meanwhile, she was missing out on other parts of her life that she wanted: she wanted to get married, have children, buy a house. But the fear that it would all fall apart scared her the most, and she kept men at a significant distance. Maybe all of that wasn't in the cards for her, but she did wish for it to happen someday.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Elliot asked her and she grinned.

"Not enough," she quipped as they climbed into the squad car.

Hanson's Market

Lower East Side

2:30 PM

Munch and Fin walked into the restroom in the back on Hanson's Market. The assistant manager called it in.

There was a male victim found in a pool of blood and, like Sherona, his pants had been pulled down around his ankles.

"Same guy, same MO?" Fin asked as he inspected the scene before them.

"So, what? These are drug related killings?" Munch suggested.

"Well, the doc did say that she found coke in Sherona's system, this must be the same case," Fin said as he stepped over the body.

He leaned down and looked at the man's face.

"Damn, he was beaten to a pulp."

Munch talked to one of the other officers.

"The guy's name was Greg Thomas," the officer informed Munch. "He was the assistant to the city manager."

Munch nodded at the information and went back over to Fin.

"Detectives," Dr. Warner called. "Look what I found."

She held up a small bag of cocaine.

"I found a piece of the seal sticking out," she explained. "Looks like the killer was interrupted."

"Detectives!" A cop called. "The assistant manager took off."

"What?" Fin asked. "Did you see where she went?"

"No sir," the cop said. "She must've taken off when we weren't looking."

"Oh really? What was your next guess?" Munch snapped angrily. "We need to find her. If she's a witness, then she needs to come forward so we can catch this son of a bitch."

"She's the assistant manager right?" Fin asked. "Let's just look her up on a schedule or health form."

"The owner's on the way," another officer said. "He asked when we're going to get the hell out of his store."

Munch snorted.

"He's more concerned about this dump than he is about a dead man in his restroom," he snipped.

"Capitalism at its worst," Fin muttered.

1-6 Precinct

SVU Squad Room

4:00 PM

Olivia and Elliot traded files to gather more information and notes across their desks.

Munch and Fin were giving them a run down on what happened at the corner store.

"We don't even know where to begin to look," Olivia sighed. "I mean, Sherona Anderson and Greg Thomas have nothing in common except the drugs, otherwise, we have no idea about the kind of company they kept or where in the HELL they got the cocaine."

Elliot tapped his pen on his desk, with a doubtful look on his face.

"Are you sure this can't go to narc?" He asked. "I mean, the victims weren't raped and this is definitely a drug related case here. We can't do our jobs without previous knowledge."

"That's why I'm here," Fin said with a grin. "Down in narc, we only saw this grade of cocaine being carted around in high priced, crowded nightclubs. You know, the ones run by smart bangers who like riding the fast track instead of earning a real living."

"That's all fine and good, but still my question is," Olivia snipped. "Where the hell do we look for this bastard? I mean, there's gotta be hundreds of clubs in this city."

"Well, unless the assistant manager of Hanson's decides to give us something, we've hit a wall," Munch commented.

Mindy Varlos's Apartment

West Side

5:45 PM

Mindy Varlos came home to the sound of her eight month old son screaming his head off, and the babysitter asleep on her couch. Unsure of how long her son had been without attention, she picked up her baby boy Peter and cuddled him as she went over to the babysitter, her younger teen sister.

"You dumbass little bitch!" Mindy yelled, waking her sister Serena up.

"What Mindy?" She mumbled, sleep laden.

"How long have you been letting Peter cry like this?" Mindy asked as she went into the small kitchen and retrieved a bottle for the little boy.

"Sorry," Serena apologized. "There's no need for name calling."

Mindy sighed.

"You can be so irresponsible sometimes," Mindy chastised. "Listen, pack your things, we have to go."

"Go?" Serena asked, sitting up from the couch. "Where? Why?"

"I can't tell you right now," Mindy said, heading to the bedroom she shared with her son. "Just pack enough to get through the week until I figure out where to go next."

Serena huffed a breath and did as her sister told her.

Mindy knew that if she didn't make sure that at least her son and her sister were safe because if they stayed at her apartment, they would all be dead for sure.


	4. Chapter 4

Pure and Simple

Chapter Three

Olivia Benson's Apartment

10:30 AM Sunday

Olivia sat on her couch, eating a few bagels with plenty of blueberry cream cheese while watching the _Leave it to Beaver _marathon on TVLand. She had a whole day to kill before going over to Elliot's house for dinner later in the evening. For some reason, she felt strange about dinner. Elliot's whole family was going to be there, and no matter how much they insisted that she was like family-that all the members of the SVU team were family-she just somehow felt out of place. Family meals were not her thing.

She sighed as she felt the unwanted carbohydrates collect in all of the wrong places and decided that she didn't care because it was good, filling and she'll work it off on Monday…or Tuesday.

She decided that she may as well spend the day resting.

She wondered what exactly Maureen was cooking. Olivia got picky when it came to things she ate. Mexican food was absolutely out of the question. It affected her stomach like coffee did. She didn't like spaghetti.

Olivia hoped that Maureen was a damn good cook.

She sat back and sighed.

This is perfect, she thought contentedly to herself. I get to relax and spend time with good friends. What better way to spend a Sunday?

Full of bagels and cream cheese and her thirst quenched by a tall glass of apple juice, Olivia felt herself dozing off again. That is, until the phone rang.

She leaned over to the end table and answered.

"Olivia Benson," she answered.

"Hey Liv," Elliot greeted her, sounding stressed.

"Hey Elliot," she said, sitting up and becoming a little more alert at the tone of his voice. "You sound like something's wrong."

She heard him sigh.

"Tell me, why am I just now finding out that my eldest daughter is getting married in a month?" He asked, his voice now full of tension, and Olivia knew that he was popping a vein right about now.

"What?" She asked.

"Did you know about this?" He inquired. "Did Kathy tell you and then tell you not to tell me?"

"Hey, hey, don't interrogate me," she said defensively. "Kathy didn't tell me anything I swear. And neither did your kids, so lay off them too."

"Okay, at least I don't feel completely betrayed," he sighed. "Well, for one thing, Maureen _is _going to have a Catholic wedding. I mean, she wasn't in the mass choir and in the academy for nothing."

Olivia couldn't help but chuckle.

"Look, even though your daughter didn't tell you, she has a right to choose what kind of wedding she wants," Olivia said. "Don't make this about you El."

"Liv, why am I getting that betrayed feeling?" He asked.

"Okay, if you don't stop acting like an asshole, I'm going to hang up the phone," she threatened.

"Alright," Elliot backed off. "Maureen is bringing him home to meet the family."

"Oh," she sighed. "Have you ever considered that there might be a reason that Maureen didn't want to tell you?"

"As long as he's not a registered sex offender I think dinner tonight will go smoothly," he said tensely. "I won't keep the grip around his neck too tight."

Olivia couldn't help but chuckle.

"Typical dad," she smiled. "He's probably a nice guy, El."

"Still, she should have told me," he sighed.

"She's so young," he said. "Maureen's still growing. She's still my little girl."

She smiled into the phone at how affectionate Elliot really could be sometimes. She knew that he cared about his girls deeply, and he probably would want to wring any guy's neck who tried to even get within a molecule of his girls.

"You'll be fine Elliot," Olivia assured him. "I'll see you later okay?"

"Yeah," he said, cheering up a little. "By the way, Maureen's not cooking Mexican food, in case you were worried. That was not a pretty sight the last time we took you to that place on Broadway for your birthday."

Olivia grimaced at the memory of that entire weekend. About two hours after eating at Vallejo Mexican Cantina, her stomach revolted against her in the worst of ways, and she spent the weekend alternating between projectile vomiting and explosive diarrhea. It took her a week to get back to the swing of things, and even longer before she trusted the guys with culinary choices.

"Ugh," she shuddered just thinking about it. "That was really gross."

"Yeah, that was pretty nasty," Elliot chuckled. "You threw up all over my car."

"Give it a rest alright?" She growled.

"Sorry," he laughed. "I'll see you later alright?

"Okay," Olivia said cheerfully. "Bye."

"Bye."

Elliot Stabler's Home

Queens

12:30 PM

Elliot felt like he'd been left out of the loop in the family. It hurt his heart that his firstborn, Maureen, his golden child, the smart overachiever who'd never really had boyfriends in the first place didn't tell him about her getting married…or even getting engaged…or even having met someone in the first place.

He felt the beginnings of a tension headache as he mulled over the issue. Maureen retreated to the grocery store before he could really begin to tear into her about hiding something as important as an engagement from him. And she was still so young. She had just turned nineteen, she was barely old enough to drink and she wants to get married. Elliot hoped that she would wait until she finished school before plans to get married ever entered her mind.

Olivia's words echoed in his head: _"Don't make this about you, El."_

He sighed deeply as he began to decompress. Why in the hell did Olivia have to be right all the time? Why was she always the voice of reason? This wasn't about him, and he wasn't trying to make it about him. He was only concerned for his daughter's welfare. He didn't even know who she was planning on marrying or what kind of family he comes from. Maureen didn't even have an engagement ring on her finger.

That raised some red flags in Elliot's mind.

It seemed like his family was changing on all fronts: his separation from Kathy, the twins and Kathleen getting older every day, and Maureen getting married…about to have a family of her own. It was all so overwhelming for Elliot, and he didn't know if he would be able to survive this.

Kathy seemed a bit more calm. She assured him that the young man was just that: young, for starters, educated, mature, and he simply adored Maureen.

Even with a divorce looming over their heads, Elliot and Kathy managed to maintain an amiable relationship and while they still loved each other deeply, they couldn't be married anymore, and that was fine, as long as they remained friends and took active roles in their children's lives. Still, the pain and emotion of going through a separation and a divorce proved to be too much at times for Elliot.

He didn't even want to mention the bills. He and Kathy both grimaced at the bill Maureen handed them for the current semester, and they decided that before the start of the next year, they'd put the house up for sale. Elliot didn't mind because he'd already been looking at new houses with Kathy for him and the kids when they visited on weekends.

Elliot shook his head of all of that as Maureen entered the house this time with groceries in her arms, and the ring was on her finger this time. He decided that now would be a great opportunity to have a little heart-to-heart with her.

"Hey dad," she said sweetly. "Come help me out will ya?"

"Sure," he said.

She put the bags on the counter and began to take out the groceries. Elliot inspected the things she bought.

"What exactly are you cooking?" He asked when he saw ground chicken and a container of what looked like fish eggs.

"Chicken burgers," she said casually. "Don't judge it yet. It's better than all that junk I know you eat on a daily basis."

"Chicken burgers," Elliot nodded. "Alright, that sounds okay. As long as its not Mexican food."

"I know, you told me over the phone," Maureen said, looking perplexed. "I thought Olivia had an iron stomach like the rest of you guys."

"Well, I used to think that too until that weekend," Elliot said, furrowing his eyebrows. "That was really disgusting."

"I know and remember Kathleen wouldn't come near you for almost a month because she thought Olivia had Asian flu?" Maureen reminded him good naturedly.

They both chuckled for a bit as they put away the food for later. Elliot looked at his daughter and he began to remember when she was just a baby. It all went by so fast and now he was here at this point, about to discuss marriage with his daughter.

"Maureen," he began softly. "Don't you think you're a little too young to be making a big decision like this?"

Maureen poured them a glass of lemonade that she made before she went to the grocery store.

"Well dad," she began, handing him a glass and sitting across from him at the table. "What can I say? I love him very much. And I've given this a lot of thought. You and mom weren't much older, remember?"

Elliot couldn't argue with her on that one. He and Kathy were both very young when they made the decision to get married and on top of that, Kathy was already pregnant with Maureen.

"You aren't pregnant, are you?" Elliot blurted without forethought.

"God no, dad," Maureen said. "Chris and I haven't even touched each other yet."

"That's his name?" Elliot asked. "What's his last name so I can run him at the department."

"Dad," Maureen warned. "Don't get all psycho ex-Marine detective on him," she pleaded. "He's a really sweet guy. We've been dating since my freshmen year and he's serious about this. And I'm serious dad."

Elliot sighed and nodded.

"I'm happy for you sweetheart, I really am," he said, staring into his glass. "I guess it's just kind of hard letting you go."

"Dad, we're not going anywhere," Maureen assured him. "I'm going to finish school, and he's going to start his career soon. Don't worry, we've got everything covered."

"What does he do?" Elliot asked.

"He's a business consultant," Maureen said.

"Sounds good," he nodded. "Is he Catholic?"

Maureen looked away.

"Well dad," she began. "God, I hope you don't have a heart attack…listen, there's a new church that opened downtown, and we're both really involved. Chris is a Christian, and I've decided to become a Christian too."

Maureen could see the look on her father's face.

She'd been dreading this moment since the day she said 'yes' to Chris Johnson's proposal for marriage. Her father's wishes for her to grow up to be a good, devout Catholic had always been looming over her head. She'd been in the mass choir since she was twelve, she'd gone to the academy until she reached high school, and she made sure not to miss service.

All that changed when she met Chris, and deep down in her heart, she knew that her change was for the better.

That was just one sore spot for her dad. The other was that she lied about Chris's career. Chris Johnson was a cop.

One thing at a time, Maureen, she thought to herself. Don't give dad a heart attack.

"Is that okay?" She asked.

"Yeah honey," Elliot said, sitting back in the chair. "As long as you remain faithful, I'm all for it."

Maureen sighed in relief that her father didn't completely go off the deep end.

"Well, its obvious that I won't be having a Catholic wedding," she said. "We're getting married at our new church, and we're writing our own vows."

Elliot nodded. He was okay with his daughter becoming a Christian. Perhaps it was long overdue for Maureen. Even though she had been exposed to Catholic teachings all her life, Maureen still questioned some aspects, and she was very intuitive and intelligent. He wondered for a second if Maureen had divulged all of this to Kathy yet.

Maureen got up and hugged him. He hugged her back tightly and kissed her cheek.

"I love you sweetheart," he whispered. "I'm proud of you, I just want you to know that."

"I love you too daddy," she whispered back. "I promise you, I'll be okay. I've prayed about it so much, and I really think that now is the time."

Elliot felt his heart beating fast in his chest with all the new information that swirled in his head. It was going to take him all he had not to subject this Chris character to a lie detector test to see what his intentions were for his daughter. Like Olivia said, this wasn't about him, or how he felt, or what he felt Maureen ought to do because he said it. All he could do was support his daughter, and just be there when she needed him.

They pulled away, and Maureen looked at her watch.

"Oh, listen, I've got to go meet Chris at his job," she said. "We're going to stop by his apartment for him to freshen up, then we're going to the school so I can make sure everything's straight with the dorm, and I'll be back. Chris is coming with us to mass."

"Alright," Elliot said.

Maureen grabbed her purse and hurried out the door.

Elliot hoped that there would be no more surprises in his family for a while.

6:30 PM

Elliot made sure to roll up his sleeves on his dress shirt. When Kathy dropped off the kids later that afternoon, they had to run upstairs and change so that they could go to five o'clock mass.

Everything felt like it was back to normal as they went to service: Kathy was standing by him, Kathleen was reciting the protocol, Dickie was sitting in the pews with the other altar boys, and Liz was in the choir. Maureen sat next to her fiancee, Chris, and Elliot had his jaw clenched and his eye on him the whole service. Kathy had to give him a pensive look every couple of glances.

He thought he would implode when he saw Chris caress his hand up and down Maureen's arm as they paid attention to service.

So help me God, I want to hurt him, he thought as he stared at the young man sitting in his living room, in his house, about to marry his daughter without even asking permission.

All the kids were bantering and clamoring about in the kitchen with Kathy, wanting to leave Elliot and Chris alone to talk in peace.

Chris gulped nervously when he saw the well muscled, protective father who was also a no nonsense detective who remained in a constant state of tension. Maureen told him what the rolling up of the sleeves meant, and he felt the fear creeping up his spine. He saw the tattoo of Elliot's platoon in the Marines.

Elliot could sense the man's discomfort.

"Hey, relax, I'm not going to threaten you or anything," Elliot sighed.

He shoved his hands into his pocket and paced in front of Chris.

"Mr. Stabler, believe me when I say that we had every intention of asking for your blessings," Chris began to explain. "Maureen insisted that we wait a little longer until we told you. I'm sorry for not asking your permission."

Elliot sat down in the arm chair across from the couch.

Kathy and Maureen looked at each other as they strained to listen to the conversation from the kitchen.

Kathy smiled.

"I think things will work out just fine," she chuckled.

7:30 PM

Just as Maureen was finishing up cooking the food, the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it," Elliot said as he put the plates on the counter to be taken out to the backyard.

He went to the front door and opened it.

Olivia was standing on the porch. Their eyes met and she grinned.

"Hi," she said.

"Hey," Elliot said, giving her a once over. "You look nice."

"Thank you," she said as she came in.

Elliot couldn't hide his obvious attraction as he took her in. Olivia had on a form fitting satin turquoise tunic top outlined in elegant lace with tight low-rise dark blue jeans and with turquoise sequined heels. Her hair was down and lightly curled and she had a turquoise wrap with the rest of the fabric resting on her shoulder.

"Hey Olivia," Kathleen said. "You look so hot! Where did you get that outfit?"

"Thanks," Olivia smiled as the young teen girl hugged her. "Uh, your dad might kill me if I tell you where I got this."

The twins came and hugged Olivia tightly and she smiled.

"You two are getting so big," she commented.

Maureen came and hugged Olivia.

"Hey, congratulations," Olivia said as she looked at Maureen's engagement ring. "Wow, this is beautiful."

"Thank you," Maureen said with a bright smile as Chris stepped forward. "This is Chris Johnson, my fiancee."

"Nice to meet you," Olivia said as she shook his hand. "I'm Olivia Benson."

"Good to meet you Olivia," he said.

After everyone bantered for a few minutes, Maureen announced that dinner was ready.

Olivia looked at the food strangely.

"Elliot, what is this?" She asked quietly as she accompanied him outside to the patio table.

"Um, chicken burgers," he whispered back and Olivia nodded as they sat.

"Hm, it's pretty good," Olivia commented after she took a small bite.

"Yeah it is," Elliot said as he made room for his platoon.

"Hey dad," Kathleen began, full of prowess. "Mom said I can get another piercing."

"No, I said I'd talk to your father and we'll think about it," Kathy said as she took a seat between Olivia and Maureen.

"And I have thought about it," he said. "The answer is no."

"Dad!" Kathleen said. "That's not fair! How come Maureen gets off with keeping a huge secret, but I come out with something and the answer's always no?"

"Because you always ask for things that are way beyond your yearly income," Kathy chuckled.

"I don't have one," Kathleen growled.

"My point exactly," Elliot said. "And wipe that look off your face."

Liz and Dickie made it a point to annoy each other by eating at the same time.

Olivia laughed at the family.

"So Chris, how did you and Maureen meet?" Elliot asked, hugging a pouting Kathleen tightly and giving her a kiss on the forehead.

"Well, we met at a community center," he began, giving a loving look to Maureen who was blushing. "She and her friends were there for a fundraiser and I happened by. They were hosting a dance off, and I don't know what made me go in there, but I did, and I met her at the greeting table."

"I wouldn't give him a ticket because I couldn't break anything bigger than a fifty," Maureen giggled. "So Chris is just standing there, trying to convince me that it was okay to break a fifty while he's holding up the line. Then, he started to flirt a little."

"We ended up exchanging phone numbers-"

"And we've been dating ever since," Maureen finished.

"Sounds very sweet," Olivia smiled. "When did he propose?"

"Actually, last Christmas," Maureen said. "We've been engaged for a year now, and we've just been learning a little more about each other and planning for our wedding."

Elliot smiled, looking a bit saddened that his firstborn was flying the coop for good.

Later after dinner, the kids were in the living room, fighting over which combinations of buttons to use for their X-Box game and the adults were in the kitchen cleaning up after the tornado that was teen and preteen kids.

"It's good to be cleaning up after someone," Elliot commented as Olivia and Kathy brought in more cups and eating utensils.

"Yeah, 'cause you're such a neat freak yourself," Kathy said sarcastically, handing him two cups to put in the sink.

"Yeah, you should see his locker at the station," Olivia added, feeding off of Kathy.

"I have," Kathy laughed.

"You two are so hilarious," Elliot grumbled. "Couple of comediennes you two."

Olivia waved him off as she put dishes in the dishwasher.

"DAD!" Dickie shouted. "HELP! Chris and I are being outnumbered by a bunch of girls!"

"I sympathize with you son," Elliot called as he walked into the living room.

Kathy and Olivia stayed in the kitchen to finish cleaning up the last few dishes.

"God, I would kill to get out more," Kathy sighed. "I'm so glad that Elliot has the kids this week."

"How are the kids handling the separation?" Olivia asked.

"They're okay," Kathy said as she closed the dishwasher and took the towel Olivia offered to dry her hands. "They're handling it well. Kids are much more intuitive and understanding than we give them credit for."

"Yeah," Olivia sighed, leaning against the counter. "What about you and Elliot?"

Kathy smiled slightly.

"We're fine," she sighed. "I mean, we've worked out a lot of the reasons why our marriage fell apart, and we've accepted them."

Olivia nodded.

"Liv," Kathy began, coming closer. "How do you get to him?"

"What do you mean?" Olivia asked.

"I mean, how do you get him to open up? Why did he only talk to you and not to me?"

Olivia looked into the woman's eyes then she looked away.

"I don't know," Olivia answered honestly. She really didn't know why Elliot preferred sharing his deepest thoughts with her and not his wife. "Maybe it's just that we both see the same things everyday. I mean, we've been partners for seven years."

"We were married for twenty years," Kathy sighed. "Please, tell me. Was there anything going on before we separated?"

"No," Olivia said honestly. "I swear to you nothing happened."

"Okay," Kathy nodded. "I'm sorry."

Olivia just sighed and nodded her understanding.

10:30 PM

After Kathy, Maureen, and Chris left, and the kids went upstairs to their rooms, Olivia and Elliot sat on the couch in the living room sipping at cups of coffee. They sat in comfortable silence for a long while.

Elliot sensed that something was bothering Olivia from the look on her face. She looked deep in thought, and she had that guilty look on her face.

"Liv, what's the matter?" He asked.

She turned to him.

"Was I the reason you and Kathy separated?" She asked.

Elliot ran a hand over his face.

"No," he said. "I don't want you to ever think that."

She swallowed hard.

"She asked me if we had an affair while you were still married," she confessed quietly.

"I knew she'd get around to asking you that," Elliot said, sighing. "Kathy's not mad at you, Liv. We're just trying to figure things out. Kathy's probably had that on her heart for a long time. Don't think this is your fault."

Olivia sighed.

Elliot shook his head as he put his cup on the coffee table.

"No matter how much we talk about it," he began. "Still, how in the hell does someone just drop things and leave after twenty years? Kathy keeps telling me that I'm in denial and I'm wondering what about. What is she seeing that I'm not?"

Olivia didn't know what to say to her partner and friend. He'd been candid about his marriage, so Olivia didn't know how to respond to his anger and his hurt. The best she could do was be there for him, and she was. She couldn't offer him any encouragements. She knew that his marriage was done and over for good. Even though she didn't want to admit it, Olivia felt deep down in her heart that she was the cause of his family being broken apart.

Seeing Elliot hurt pained her as well because it was bad enough that they had to deal with what they saw on the job; but to come home to no wife, to an empty house every other week was something that would push anybody over the edge.

But at least we still have each other to lean on, Olivia thought to herself. If all else fails, we know we can count on each other to get through and deal.

They were in the age of 'deal.' So your wife left you? Deal. So you're the child of rape and you think you have the same evil, perverted impulses as your father? Deal. So you work in the most pressured and underpaid unit in the police? Deal. There was no compassion anymore, and people just went on about their lives, aware but unaware at the same time because they rely on people like Olivia and Elliot to keep the peace and keep it from happening to them and their families.

Where did that leave Elliot and Olivia?

Their eyes met, and in an instant, they both saw things in their eyes that they shouldn't have seen, and they looked away awkwardly.


	5. Chapter 5

Pure and Simple

Chapter Four

1-6 Precinct

SVU Squad Room

9:30 AM Tuesday

The skies over New York were overcast and ominous. Elliot knew that it was going to pour down rain again as he heard a clap of thunder explode through the skies. Olivia looked up at the high windows, and he knew that she was hoping for rain, even though she knew that it would only make their day that much more hectic.

They exchanged plates of breakfast because Olivia wanted the sausage and Elliot wanted the hash browns. Munch and Fin dropped off more files on their desk before they began eating their breakfasts.

The rain began to fall hard and Elliot could see a small smile on Olivia's face.

"We have to go to the elementary school and talk to Sherona's friends," Elliot said. "Margaret and Yvonne."

Olivia nodded as she finished up her breakfast.

"They teach fifth grade," she reminded him as she drank the rest of her coffee. "I don't think they're going to give us anything more than what the mother told us. I mean, they would be more on the outside don't you think?"

"Maybe," Elliot shrugged.

"Hey, I got a hold of employee records from the owner at Hanson's," Fin announced. "The assistant manager's name is Melinda Varlos. She's been working at Hanson's for a year."

"So, she interrupted the killer?" Olivia asked.

"Yeah, then while we were with Warner, the girl took off," Fin explained.

"Well, that just makes our job that much harder," Elliot groused. "From the looks of things, this bastard isn't going to stop and he's not exactly the poster child for mercy."

"And how much do you want to bet that she knew the killer?" Olivia asked.

Another burst of thunder rumbled through the sky.

Pier 6

__

The Yucca

11:15 AM

Mindy Varlos and her sister settled in to the small space provided by her brother Niklos. Her son Peter was very fussy, and she tried as hard as she could to appease him so that they wouldn't draw even the slightest attention to themselves.

Niklos came down from the deck, angered that he had to help his grown sister.

"I don't understand why you do these things Melinda," he said in his thick accent. "I warn you about the Americans. I told you to stay in Greece with mother, but no, you had to come here and chase that degenerate boyfriend of yours."

"Niko," Mindy began. "Please, just help us. People are going to come after me. He's going to know that I called the police."

"I told you to leave him," Niklos argued. "And I'm sure you're still working at that damned club degrading yourself."

"No, I'm not," Mindy sighed. "Look, we're not going to stay here long. I just need you to take me to your friend, get us new passports and visas so we can go back to Greece, get mama and yaya out of there and to Chicago with your sister-in-law."

Niklos ran his hand over his face. Serena held Peter as she watched her siblings argue about their fates.

"You have everything figured out, don't you?" He yelled. "It's not that simple. You think he's just going to forget about you? You have a son together, and I guarantee you that he's going to take Peter from you and kill us all!"

Mindy couldn't stop the tears from falling down her face. She knew that she had put her family in trouble. Why did she allow these things to happen to her? She just had to run from under the shelter of her family in Greece with the first man that gave her a second glance her way. He promised her so many things that her father never gave her-a decent stable home, love and support in her plans-and most importantly, he allowed her to be herself.

All that changed once she moved in with him. There was no escaping Quentin Iberson.

She had no money, no contacts with relatives other than her brother before she left. He became controlling, inattentive, and sometimes, he acted like he didn't care about her at all. Except for sex. That was the only time she could count on him to be affectionate to her. Other times, though, he abused her, drugged her up, made her work at strip clubs on top of working as a cage girl in his own night club for extra cash. Just when she thought that she would get out and completely get away from him, he had molested her one drunken night, and just four weeks later, Mindy found out that she was pregnant.

Quentin was proud of his contribution, but he didn't treat her any better. It was then that Mindy decided to leave him in the dead of night, and she managed to find a steady paying job to support herself and her sister when she arrived.

The pregnancy went smoothly, and she didn't hear from Quentin, which she was relieved at.

Now, he seemed to be taunting her, wanting something.

After all, she had always been his favorite girl.

P.S. 163

South Side

12:30 PM

Elliot and Olivia walked the sidewalk along the playground at the elementary school. The school had been praised for its excellence in academics for the first time in its history. It was one of the few schools lucky enough to receive any funding of any kind in this area of town.

The rain had settled down to just a drizzle and Olivia was able to take off the hood over her head.

She paused for a moment and looked at the children at play in the playground. She sighed deeply, thinking that if she could, she would take each child under her wing and protect them forever; preserve their innocence.

She didn't know where these feelings came from. She'd been feeling them a lot lately, and she wondered if it was the job or if it was something much deeper than that.

"Liv?" Elliot asked, breaking into her thoughts. "Are you coming?"

She shook her head.

"Uh, yeah, I'm right behind you," she assured him. "I was just thinking."

Elliot gave her a sidelong glance.

"What about?" He ventured to ask, knowing that she most likely wouldn't be inclined to share with him.

"Nothing," she sighed.

Even though he anticipated it, her response still angered him. He couldn't understand it. He'd bared his soul to her, talked to her about his failing marriage, she'd encouraged him, held him up for so long…why did she think that he wouldn't be able to do the same for her?

She'd been a bit withdrawn ever since the Troost case. When he saw her with baby Sarah, he couldn't help but grin a little because he knew that Sarah was in very capable and loving hands.

The way Olivia looked at the baby girl; it was different. She looked at the child as if she were her own, and treated her as such. Her eyes widened with small joy, and all the tension that he knew that she'd been feeling all day simply melted once she had the baby in her arms, safe from a mother who could care less about her welfare.

They walked through the playground to the fifth grade wing.

"Olivia!" A voice shouted.

Olivia and Elliot turned to see India running up to them with her backpack hooked on her arm and her curls bouncing. India ran into Olivia, intending to give her a tight hug. This action knocked the wind out of Olivia, but she welcomed it as India hugged her around her waist.

"Hi India," she said sweetly. "How are you sweetheart?"

"Fine," the little girl beamed as she took Olivia's hand. "C'mere, I have to show you my grades before grandma comes."

Olivia looked back at Elliot and he nodded and let her go with India. He went inside the school to look for the two teachers.

The teachers' names were posted in decorative letters outside their doors. Elliot looked at each of the names until he came across two familiar names: Margaret Taylor and Yvonne Meyers.

He knocked on the door to the classroom where they were both sitting at separate desks, grading papers.

One of the women looked up and waved him in.

"Are you here for a parent/teacher conference?" Margaret asked cordially with a smile.

"Uh, no," Elliot began, holding up his badge. "I'm Detective Elliot Stabler, my partner Olivia Benson will be joining us shortly."

Margaret's face fell.

"You're here about Sherona aren't you?"

"Yes ma'am," Elliot said, turning when he felt his partner's presence.

"Hi, I'm Detective Benson," Olivia introduced herself.

"Margaret Taylor and this is my assistant Yvonne Meyers," she sighed. "Your partner says that you're here about Sherona. The kids loved her so much. She was a good person and an awesome teacher. What kind of sick bastard would do this to her?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out," Olivia explained. "When was the last time you saw Sherona?"

Margaret sighed deeply and went back over to her desk, sitting on the edge of it.

"Friday evening, we went out for drinks," Yvonne explained. "We went to Cut and Dry first, then to Shakes to dance a little. By that time, it was about nine thirty. Margaret and I left at about ten. Sherona wanted to stay out a little longer."

"Was Sherona acting strangely?" Olivia asked. "Was she drunk?"

Margaret sighed.

"I wouldn't call it drunk," she began slowly. "I guess she was just to glad to be out of that apartment. When we hit Shakers, she was letting loose a little, and she seemed to get more energized the later it got. She'd only had a couple of martinis at Cut and Dry."

Elliot looked at his partner, who was obviously trying to avoid the subject of Sherona's drug abuse.

"Ms. Meyers, Ms. Taylor," he began. "Were either of you aware of the fact that Sherona was using cocaine?"

"What?" Yvonne asked, shocked.

Olivia scowled at her partner for bringing the subject up this early in the game. However, Margaret didn't look quite as surprised.

"Ms. Taylor?" Olivia inquired.

"I didn't think it was cocaine, but I knew that she was on something," she admitted. "I thought that bastard was her boyfriend."

"Who?" Elliot asked.

"I don't know his name, I barely even know what he looks like," Margaret explained. "But he stopped by in front of the playground at least twice a week during lunch hour, and she'd take off with him. He looks like the corporate type. He had a shiny black Escalade."

"Did you get a license plate?" Olivia asked.

"No, I never paid that much attention," the teacher explained. "But I did get a small glimpse of his face. He was young, black, and he had a goatee. The guy wears Armani though."

Elliot and Olivia looked at each other.

"How do you figure that?" Elliot asked.

"Because my husband has that exact same suit," Margaret sighed, crossing her arms over her chest. "And believe me, it didn't come cheap."

Both detectives nodded.

"Thanks for you time," Elliot said before they headed back out to the playground.

India came running up to Olivia once again catching her off guard.

"Sweetheart, where's your grandmother?" Olivia asked.

"I don't know," India said quietly. "But will you stay with me until she comes?"

"Uh," Olivia looked at Elliot, who was checking his watch. He nodded. "Sure. Why don't you show me and my friend some of your drawings?"

"Okay," India said, pulling out her pictures from her backpack.

Olivia smiled. "These are pretty, India."

"Thank you," she said, looking at Olivia's badge.

Elliot noticed and he pulled his out and gave it to her. India rubbed her small fingers over the badge.

"Mommy said that sometimes these are fake," she said in a small voice.

"Well, it's very real India," Elliot said, sitting on the other side of her. "And I promise that you can trust us."

Olivia continued to look at India's drawings. She smiled a little at the girl's drawings, and they were typical for a little girl's: houses, fairies, rainbows, pictures of her family. Then, there was one odd thing out.

"India," Olivia began. "Can you tell me who you drew in this picture?"

India leaned over and looked at the picture.

"That's my mommy," she pointed out. "Then there's my grandma and that's our old house."

"Okay, but who's that, behind the house?" Olivia asked.

"A man," she said, kicking her dangling feet. "I see him a lot. He's scary."

"How is he scary?" Elliot asked.

India leaned in and whispered to Olivia.

"He stands at the corner after school," she whispered. "Before grandma comes. He's not here today. But sometimes, I see him outside our house."

"Do you know what he looks like?" Olivia asked.

"No, he always has a mask on," India giggled. "Sometimes they look funny, and sometimes they look mean and scary."

"Detectives," Helen said, coming up to Olivia. "Hi, what are you doing here?"

"We had some business," Elliot said.

"Oh, well thanks for keeping her company," Helen said, taking India's hand. "I'm sorry I'm late baby."

"That's okay Grandma," India said with a bright smile. "Elliot said we can trust them."

Helen nodded and looked at the detectives.

"Yes, baby, yes we can," she said, tears brimming her eyes.

Grey's Papaya

1:45 PM

It was obvious to Elliot that there was no cheering Olivia up. He'd tried to get her to eat some lunch, but she hadn't touched her food yet. She wasn't a picky eater, that was for sure, so he knew that she wasn't abstaining because of a diet. Like she needed to if she were dieting. He'd gotten her favorite, yet she was still tense. She looked out the window and she had her arms crossed over her chest. She'd been quiet since they left the school and he wondered if she was getting too close.

"Liv?" Elliot inquired. "You need to eat something. I know you didn't eat this morning."

That accusation got her attention.

"I did eat," she defended, glaring at him.

"Watery oatmeal and a soda doesn't cut it," he said. "Eat."

Olivia was now scowling at him.

"I don't appreciate you treating me like a child," she snapped.

"Liv, you're my partner, being a pain in each other's asses is part of the job," he quipped.

"I know, I'm sorry," she sighed, continuing to look out the window. It had begun to rain again, and she felt a little better. She shook her head and turned to him. "I'm sorry, okay?"

Elliot nodded.

"Are you sure you're not getting too close?" He asked.

"Don't pretend this isn't getting to you too," she said. "I don't know…lately, I've been doing a lot of thinking. I care about this little girl very much. I feel…obligated to her now."

"Liv, she'll be alright," he assured her. "We're going to find out what happened to India's mother, and you'll be okay."

Olivia sighed heavily and looked out at the rain. The grumbling of her stomach made her turn to her steaming plate of food, and she felt a little better. She knew that Elliot was pleased to see her eat something.

"Thanks," Olivia said with a small smile.

Elliot only gave her a ghost of a smile.

When they finished their meals, they rushed back out to the car and quickly got in. Olivia was still on edge, and Elliot didn't know why she was feeling this way. He understood her feelings because they mirrored his own, but usually, she was the one that got over it the fastest and she would have to encourage him.

"Liv," he began. "There's something else bothering you, I can tell."

"Well it's not like you ever tell me what's on your mind so," she groused coldly looking out the window. "Just drive."

"No," Elliot said.

"Fine," she huffed as she prepared to get out the car.

"Hey, hey," he said, grabbing her arm. "Olivia, wait, I'm sorry alright? What is going on with you?"

Olivia pulled away from him. She cradled her head in her hands and shook her head. She sighed and rested her head against the window.

"Liv, please," he said quietly.

"This is dangerous," she sighed, looking at him. "I can't talk about it."

Elliot looked into her eyes and he saw the sadness and uncertainty in her orbs. Before his mind could protest it, his hand reached over and caressed her cheek ever so lightly, making her close her eyes and let out a shuddering sigh.

We can't, she thought frantically to herself. Please God don't let us do this…we can't, we can't, we can't.

He leaned in ever so slowly, their lips inching closer and closer, driving her crazy, and her mind yelling at her. He knew this was wrong, but there was something between them that he couldn't ignore any longer.

Finally, their lips met, and it felt like a thousand little flames. The moment was too perfect. The rain pelting the car, the semi darkness inside, and the quiet. Olivia couldn't have wanted anything more out of this. His lips were soft and gentle against hers, tempting her to take more, to kiss deeper.

Elliot heard her whimper and he felt tingles all over his body, and he couldn't even remember if he felt this with Kathy.

God help me, he thought to himself. Is this what Kathy was talking about?

When their lips parted seemingly of their own volition, they combusted. Olivia moaned as she placed both hands on his cheeks.

She pulled away, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.

"Please don't do this," she whispered.

They pulled away slowly and they sat for a second, trying to calm their bodies down and to get back into work mode.

"Drive," Olivia sighed.


	6. Chapter 6

Pure and Simple

Chapter Five

Pier 6

The Yucca

7:30 PM

"By God Serena can't you do anything right?" Niklos yelled at his younger sister as he took the pan of burning food off of the stove and threw it into the sink.

Serena held her hands up and plopped down in a chair.

"Sorry," she grumbled. "I was just trying to help."

"That's why you should have never left Greece," he chided her. "You want to be just like these useless American women now. You dress like a prostitute, and you don't even care about your education."

Serena only rolled her eyes and went to cuddle Peter when he whined for attention.

Niklos went out to the upper deck to get some fresh air after opening the port holes. The night was clear, but cool, and he knew that he should at least have a light sweater, but he was too upset at Serena to care about the cold. Mindy had gotten herself into a mess of trouble, and as much as he loved his sister, he resented her for being so foolish and then asking him for a handout.

Deciding that a smoke would calm him down, Nkilos stepped out onto the pier and began walking down to the edge. He lit up and inhaled deeply before blowing it out slowly as he walked. He wasn't aware of the heavy footsteps following behind him.

Dmitri Grotevsky balled his fists tightly as he approached his next victim. He looked briefly. The Yucca. He felt his pulse racing as the tension in his body built up, and he felt his finger nails digging into the skin of his calloused hands.

Niklos stopped at the other exit out of the pier and took another long drag from his cigarette. Dmitri seized the moment and attacked Niklos before Niklos could even realize what was coming. Dmitri continued to punch Niklos until he became almost completely limp in his arms.

He dragged him back to the boat. When he went below deck, Serena screamed.

8:05 PM

Mindy bundled against the chilly ocean air that blew in as she walked down the pier to her brother's boat. She huffed a breath when she saw that her brother hadn't turned on the lights to his boat. She flipped the switch once inside the quarters, and she gasped at the sight she saw.

"Niklos?" She screamed. "Oh God in Heaven! Niklos!"

Her brother was lying in a pool of blood, and Mindy knew that he was dead.

"Oh, Niko," Mindy cried as she sat next to him and called the paramedics. "I'm sorry I let them get to you."

Mindy prayed that somebody would pick up.

"Yes," she said, looking around. "I have an emergency…I can't tell you all that. Just come to pier six, The Yucca. A man is dead. Please, hurry."

She hung up the phone and began to gather her things. She quickly gathered her child's things and her sister's things. She made sure that she wasn't leaving any kind of ID behind for the police to find. She knew who was behind this, and she knew that if she told anyone else, that the rest of her family would be dead by morning.

When she heard the sirens, she kissed her brother's palm, gathered up the bags, and left the boat. She knew that there was another exit at the end of the pier and she quickly headed down that way before the paramedics had a chance to spot her.

8:45 PM

Elliot and Olivia drove up to the pier.

"I hate the docks at night," Olivia sighed and Elliot looked at her.

"Why?" He asked.

"Because it reminds me of a really bad date I had when I was eighteen," she answered in a tone that signaled she didn't want to go into further detail.

They stepped out of their squad car and immediately they were greeted by M.E. Warner. She had a grim and exhausted look on her face as she approached them.

"What'd you call us for?" Elliot asked. "I thought this was just a smash 'n grab gone wrong?"

"I though so too until I noticed a pattern," she sighed as she turned and walked back to the small boat. "The victim has similar patterns of bruising and blows to the head like Sherona Anderson and Greg Thomas."

"So, you're saying that it's the same guy?" Olivia asked. "For sure?"

"Yes," Dr. Warner confirmed. "I think he's escalating too."

They walked onto the boat and headed below decks. The small living space was cluttered, smoky, and it smelled like burnt food. There was a pan on the stove, and in general it looked like something the victim had been doing was interrupted with deadly consequence.

"Did you find any ID?" Olivia asked.

"I found a renewed permit in his pocket," the doctor explained. "The victim's name was Niklos Varlos. He just got a permit for sailing tours to the Statue of Liberty."

The detectives furrowed their eyebrows.

"Varlos?" Elliot pondered.

"Mindy Varlos," Olivia broke in. "What, is he the husband?"

"The guy who killed Sherona and Greg Thomas must've been trying to get to Mindy," Elliot surmised. "And I'm guessing Niklos probably wouldn't give her up."

CSU was searching high and low for anything that might give them something to go on.

"Again, there's no stab wounds, gunshot wounds, or evidence of drugging," Warner explained. "Niklos was killed with bare hands and feet. The depressions in his head indicate that he was stomped on several times. He most likely died within minutes of the first blow."

"What the hell is wrong with this guy?" Olivia asked.

"Well, if he got to Niklos, he's definitely going to get to Mindy in no time," Elliot said.

"Detectives!" A CSU tech yelled from the small bedroom flanking the living area.

Elliot and Olivia went into the room.

The tech held up a picture of a baby and a pacifier he'd found under the cot.

Elliot snapped on a pair of gloves and took the picture.

"There was a baby here?" Olivia asked.

"Let's not jump to conclusions," Elliot said. "This stuff could've been down here for months."

"I'd check the back of the picture," the tech said before leaving the room.

Elliot turned it over and Olivia looked over his shoulder.

"Look at the date," she observed. "The picture was taken two weeks ago. There was definitely a baby here and now that son of a bitch has him."

"Bright Expressions," Elliot read the company label.

1-6 Precinct

SVU Squad Room

9:40 PM

The detectives were dead on their feet as they walked into the squad room.

"You two look like something out of a Wes Craven film," Munch remarked as he prepared his things to get ready to go home.

"John, you're lucky that I'm too tired," Olivia said grumpily. "Or else I would kick your sorry, wide awake ass."

"Ooh, I'm scared," he teased as he walked out.

Olivia plopped into her chair at her desk and sighed.

Elliot went over to fix a cup of coffee.

"Okay, what do we know?" Olivia asked.

"So far, nothing that can't wait until tomorrow morning," Cragen answered. "Go home."

With that, he walked back into his office.

Elliot sipped at his coffee and gathered up his things.

"I'll drive you home," Elliot offered.

Olivia just nodded tiredly and pulled on her coat.

The night was calm and chilly, and all Olivia wanted to do was bundle up, crawl into bed and just sleep her life away. Unfortunately, she could only sleep for about seven or so hours and that was good enough for her, even though she was beyond exhausted.

"Elliot," she began as they walked out to the car. "About earlier today…"

"Liv, I'm sorry," Elliot interrupted. "I don't know what came over me. I guess-"

"I liked it," she blurted out before she could stop herself and he looked at her with surprise. "And it's scaring me."

Elliot was speechless.

"Yeah," he sighed. "It's scaring me too."

Olivia nodded as they got into the car.

Olivia Benson's Apartment

10:00 PM

There wasn't a time that Olivia could recall being nervous around her partner.

This was the first time that she'd ever felt herself being unraveled in front of Elliot. They stood close, almost nose to nose, looking into each other's eyes, silently asking for permission; waiting for one of them to give out and let go. Of course, both of them being strong willed people, it turned into a staring match, both of them silently hoping that something would give.

Finally, both conceded, and they inched forward ever so slowly.

When their lips met, the same tingling sensation from earlier in the day was again elicited and Olivia felt her entire body turn to jell-o as Elliot cupped her face gently in his hands. The kiss was soft, intimate, and undemanding, and soon, it turned into short, gentle samplings, their lips meeting again and again and again.

They both pulled away, and Olivia grinned slightly. Elliot smoothed over her hair and pushed it behind her ear as he looked into her eyes.

"Good night," she whispered as she opened up her apartment and slinked inside. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Good night Liv," he said before walking down the hallway.

Olivia closed the door and leaned up against it, her legs slowly giving out under her as she slid to the floor. Her heart was pounding in her chest and she was in desperate need of a drink. Had her partner just kiss her again? The moment had finally happened and she never imagined that it would be so…perfect. Again.

Olivia sat on the floor, confused and shaking her head.

Elliot Stabler's Home

Queens

10:40 PM

When Elliot pulled up to the house, he noticed that there was another car parked out front. When he looked closer, he realized that it was Maureen's car, and it was then that he realized all that had transpired over the last forty minutes.

God help me, he thought to himself. I kissed my partner of seven years _again_. Either I'm the most impulsive, irrational jackass on the planet, or I'm following my heart. And while I was making sure to completely floor Olivia, I forgot about my children. That's probably why Maureen is here. Jeez, what's wrong with me?

He cut off the engine to the car and got out quickly. He ran up the steps to the front door and opened it. He saw Maureen and Chris cuddled up together under a blanket watching a movie. He slipped back into cop mode, ready to jump on the young man for even being that close to his daughter, under the blanket where he couldn't see their hands, on his couch in the dark.

Elliot felt his chest tightening and he loosened his tie as he flipped the switch to the living room. Maureen and Chris jumped and turned.

"Oh, hey dad," she said in surprise. "You scared us."

"Hi," he said, looking at Chris. "What are you doing here? And why are you that close to my daughter?"

"Dad," Maureen said in a scolding tone.

Chris scooted away from Maureen and smiled nervously.

"Hi Mr, Stabler," he said quietly.

"Anyway," Elliot began, shaking his head. "I'm sorry sweetheart. Thanks for looking out."

"It's okay," Maureen said, turning off the movie. "Dad, I know you're stressed and I know you work hard. Just give us a heads up every once in a while okay?"

Elliot smiled.

"Okay," he sighed, turning to Chris. "And you," he began, feeling his chest tightening again. "Just, keep it in your pants."

"Dad!" Maureen shrieked.

Elliot gave her a pensive look before he headed upstairs to check on the rest of his brood. He peeked in on Kathleen, who was still up studying. She sighed and continued to study, ignoring him.

Elliot came in slowly, sitting in the chair at her cluttered desk.

"If you don't want us anymore, you could just say so and get us over with," Kathleen huffed, making Elliot tense with anger at her tone.

"Hey, watch it," he warned.

Kathleen only rolled her eyes and closed her book and put it on the floor. She climbed into bed and turned away from her father.

"I'm going back to grandma's tomorrow," she said, burrowing her face in her pillow. "At least I know I'm thought of over there."

Elliot sighed and went over to his angry teen. He smoothed down her hair as she began to cry. She turned over and hugged her father tightly, sobbing into his shoulder.

"Daddy," she cried. "I'm sorry I said that. I'm just mad because I miss you being around all the time. When you work too much I feel like you don't care about us. I want you and mom back together. I want things to be normal again."

"I know baby," he whispered. "I'm sorry for not being home as often as I should. I want things to be normal too, but Kathleen, things don't always work out quite the way we want them to and we have to accept it."

"I have to accept being a statistic?" She asked, pulling away. "I have to accept that my parents are getting a stupid divorce?"

"As bad as that sounds," Elliot sighed. "Yes, you do. Then, you have to move past it and adjust. I know you can do that. I promise you, things will get better. I love you."

"Love you too dad," Kathleen sighed, wiping her tears. "Good night."

"Good night," he said before going to check up on the twins.

Lizzie and Dickie were snoring, unaware of their father's presence in either of their rooms.

After he checked up on his kids, Elliot headed back downstairs and he felt his chest tightening again and a vein popping when he saw Maureen engaged in a passionate liplock with an already-in-deep-water-and-skating-on-very-thin-ice Chris. Elliot curled his hands into tight fists at the entrance to the living room.

"What the hell are you doing?" He asked, the couple breaking away at the sound of his voice. "None of that in my house."

"Dad!"

Sherona Anderson's Apartment

South Side

1:40 AM

Helen awoke with a start as she heard shuffling in the front of her apartment. Objects were being thrown to the floor and furniture was being pushed aside in the darkness of the apartment. She thought at first that she was dreaming, but when her door opened slowly, she felt the fear and her heart began to pound harder and harder.

Two towering, dark figured stood in the doorway. Helen reached over to the phone, but she felt her hand being grabbed and she was pushed onto her back, being subdued by the intruder. She felt a sharp sting across her face as the intruder slapped her hard.

Her heart was beating all kinds of strange beats, and she felt her entire body beginning to go numb.

India heard the commotion way before her grandmother did, and she knew exactly what to do. It was what her mother taught her to do one weekend.

As India hid in her safe place, she heard the men turning her bedroom inside out looking for her. Every breath she took sounded loud and disruptive, despite her being quiet as a mouse. The only light in the small space was the dim glow of her grandmother's cell phone. She looked at the card stuck to it and dialed the number quietly while the noise was still disruptive.

Olivia Benson's Apartment

1:50 AM

Olivia turned over in bed as she heard the jingle on her cell phone. It had stopped ringing as soon as she was aware that it had rung in the first place. She groaned and wiped her eyes as she reached over for it. Her pager beeped and vibrated itself onto the floor and she sucked her teeth in agitation.

Then her cell phone rang again as soon as her pager finished its dramatics.

"Alright," she huffed tiredly. "If this is you Stabler, I'll make it worth my while to drive to Queens for once. Olivia Benson."

All she heard on the other end was fearful breathing, and commotion.

"Hello?" Olivia tried again. "If this is some kind of weird crank call-"

"Olivia?" A small voice asked quietly.

"Yes, this is she, may I ask who's calling?" Olivia inquired.

"Olivia?" The small voice asked again.

"India?" Olivia asked. "Sweetheart, what's wrong?"

"There's somebody in our house," the little girl whispered. "They're saying bad things. They're hurting grandma."

Olivia could hear the commotion and the voices in the background and she immediately got up and put on her shoes and grabbed her jacket. India started crying.

"I'm on my way baby," Olivia reassured the little girl. "But you have to listen to me okay? I have to hang up and call my friends to come help me okay?"

"No," she cried.

"Sweet pea, I promise I will call you right back okay?" Olivia said as she ran down the stairs and out the door to her car. "We'll hang up on the count of three okay?"

"Okay," India said quietly.

"Okay," Olivia sighed as she sped down the street. "One, two, three. Hang up."

When she heard the line go dead, she called another precinct.

"Detective Olivia Benson from the 1-6 special victims unit to the 1-5 we have a home invasion on the south side at the 18347 apartments, third floor, apartment 238. There's a little girl inside, I'm keeping contact with her, I need unis over there now."

"1-5 copy that," the dispatcher announced.

Olivia hung up and dialed India again.

Sherona Anderson's Apartment

South Side

2:00 AM

Quentin Iberson kicked various objects around in the old woman's room out of frustration. Dmitri was tearing the rest of the apartment apart as he stood in front of the ailing woman. Helen wasn't aware of it, but she was suffering from a heart attack and if help didn't arrive soon, she would surely die.

She took in the man. She had seen him before and she had like him before because he made her daughter happy. Quentin had been over for dinner, had taken good care of Sherona until he found out that she was pregnant with his child.

He was yet young; twenty seven yeas old and he had dark, exotic skin, chiseled features, and well muscled. He had on a custom made sweat suit on with a black beanie. His dark eyes bore through Helen as he hounded her constantly about her missing granddaughter.

"I already told you," she began breathlessly. "I don't know what happened to India. She's supposed to be in bed."

"You better not be screwing around with me old woman," Quentin warned. "I want my daughter now."

"Why, you didn't want her five years ago when Sherona first had her," Helen spat. "You don't really want her. You're going to treat her like property, just like you did Sherona."

"Shut up!" Quentin yelled again.

All of a sudden, in the quiet, he heard a cell phone jingling ever so quietly.

Helen feared the absolute worst then.

Quentin went into India's room.

Olivia Benson's Car

2:15 AM

"Please India, pick up baby," Olivia chimed.

"Olivia?"

She smiled in relief.

"Good job sweetheart," Olivia praised. "You being so brave right now. I'm almost to you, okay? Just stay calm for me."

"Okay," the little girl whispered.

It began to rain again as Olivia continued to make her way over to India.

"Can you tell what's going on right now?" She asked asshe sped through a red light.

"I can hear a man's voice," India whispered. "But he's quiet now. Grandma's crying for me."

"Do you know them?" Olivia drilled. "Does your grandma know them?"

"I don't-"

Olivia jumped at the shrill scream that filtered through her cell phone and she let a small sound of her own escape.

"India?" Olivia said into the phone. "Sweet pea? C'mon India talk to me please."

Olivia felt her heart palpitating as she heard India scream again and a man's voice shouting at her to be quiet. Then the phone went dead.

"Oh God, no," Olivia panted in fear. She threw her phone onto the passenger seat and floored the accelerator.


	7. Chapter 7

Pure and Simple

Chapter Six

Sherona Anderson's Apartment

South Side

2:51 AM

Olivia sprinted up the steps to the third floor to get to India. She prayed to God that India nor her grandmother was hurt too severely.

She made it to apartment 238 and her heart began to beat faster when she saw that the door had been left ajar. She heard the sirens in the distance, making their way down to assist her, but there was no time to wait. She drew her gun and entered the ravaged apartment slowly and quietly. It looked like a storm had breezed through the small space, and Olivia was careful not to trip over anything as she made her way to the bedrooms.

"India!" She called, sure that the perps weren't in the apartment. "India, where are you?"

There was no answer.

She heard her own heavy breathing as she approached the first bedroom. Once there, Olivia gasped.

"Oh my God," she said as she saw Helen lying face down on the floor. "Helen!"

Olivia felt for a pulse, but only found faint, irregular flutters, and she turned the elder woman over slowly onto her back. Olivia leaned in to hear whether or not Helen was breathing and she wasn't. The pulse was a good sign, so Olivia began CPR.

"Helen, you can not go, not like this," Olivia said firmly. "India!"

Again, there was no answer. Olivia knew just from over the phone previously that someone had taken the little girl.

"Helen, please don't do this," Olivia pleaded again, tears brimming her eyes. "You have to get through this, for India."

Despite all her best efforts, Olivia could not save Helen, but she continued nonetheless, clinging to a false hope of a miracle until she heard voices and several footsteps coming upstairs. She felt the tears slipping down her cheeks as she felt herself all of a sudden being pulled away by paramedics when they arrived.

She had lost Helen, and she knew that she would never forgive herself if she lost India too.

3: 25 AM

Elliot drove up to the hectic scene, his mind only on Olivia, even though he was pretty confident that she could take care of herself. But on this particular morning, he knew that she wouldn't be able to handle this by herself.

He got out of his car quickly, going in search of Olivia. He flashed his badge at a couple of unis trying to protect the scene and keep outsiders behind the tape. He saw two ambulances, and he immediately began to worry more because he wasn't sure if Olivia had tried something and gotten hurt, or that the remaining relatives of the Anderson family had gotten hurt or worse.

Elliot had been jarred awake from a nap on his couch by the phone. He couldn't quite remember what exactly Cragen had told him; all he could remember hearing were the names India and Olivia in the same sentence, and he only focused on them. He barely remembered the drive from his house in Queens to the south side.

He inquired about Olivia again.

"She's in the ambulance getting checked out," an officer finally divulged to him, and he raced over to her.

He saw her sitting on the stretcher, looking tired and drained. Her cheeks were glistening with the wetness of shed tears, and her shirt was stained with blood, as were her pants. She sniffled and looked up, and she held her arms out to him as he approached her.

Elliot embraced her tightly as she sniffled.

"We have to find her El," Olivia whispered. "I won't be able to live with myself if India dies too."

"Shh," Elliot whispered, cupping her face in his hands, wiping away her tears. "Are you hurt anywhere?"

Olivia shook her head, taking in her state of dress for the first time since the whole ordeal began. She had Helen's blood all over herself, and she realized it must have been from when she wrapped her arms about herself as she was being escorted to an ambulance so that the paramedics could make sure she didn't go into shock or anything.

"I'm okay," Olivia said in a shaky voice. "Helen's dead. She's gone. I tried so hard."

"I know you did," Elliot said to her softly.

"I should've gotten here sooner and-" Elliot interrupted her.

"Liv, you did the best you could," he said, smoothing over her hair. "Liv, look at me."

Olivia met his eyes.

"You're alright," he said to her firmly. "You're okay."

She nodded and sighed, and Elliot could feel her entire body deflating from released tension. She didn't even notice that it had stopped raining.

"I'll take you home," Elliot said, helping her out of the ambulance.

"What about-"

"Liv, there's nothing more we can do here," he said, putting his hands on her shoulders. "Okay?"

Olivia nodded.

Elliot offered his jacket to her since she had shed her own unknowingly before.

Olivia Benson's Apartment

4:00 AM

Olivia discovered that she didn't even lock her door in her haste to get to the Anderson apartment. He key slipped easily, and she furrowed her eyebrows, shaking her head.

"Jesus, I wasn't thinking at all," she sighed, opening up her door and walking inside. "I was just…doing."

Elliot closed and locked the door behind her and went into her kitchen. He began to make some coffee as she shrugged off his coat and hung it up in her hall closet.

"I'm going to uh, take a shower," she said quietly. "Then we can head over to the station."

"Liv," Elliot said, coming over to her. "Do you need to talk about anything?"

"I'm fine El," she sighed. "At least let me get changed before we do anything else."

"Okay," he said, holding her gaze.

She nodded before going into her bathroom.

Elliot went back to her kitchen and looked in the fridge. She had some leftovers.

"Wow, she does cook," he mumbled to himself as he took out some of the food.

She had macaroni and cheese, some baked chicken, and of course a hearty salad. He couldn't help but chuckle.

Olivia looked at herself in the mirror. She knew that she had to throw the clothes she was wearing now away. She couldn't believe that the bastard had gotten to Helen and India. At this point, all she could do was hope that they could find India alive. But then, who would care for the little girl when she was found? Her mother was dead, her grandmother was dead, and so far, there was no father in the picture.

India would be a ward of the state once she was found, and as much as Olivia would like to possibly adopt the little girl, she knew that not only her job, but her own personal convictions wouldn't allow her to, and that angered her because she couldn't understand her convictions. She felt this constant guilt that she'd been holding for too long now.

She sighed. Elliot was being so open and he seemed so ready to work out the dynamic between them which she couldn't deny or ignore any longer. But she couldn't help but think that perhaps she was the rebound woman. It has only been a year that Elliot had been separated from Kathy, and from the way they continued to talk and remain friends, it looked like they could head toward reconciliation.

Olivia preferred that Elliot reconciled with his wife. It was easier than admitting that she wanted to be with him. Admitting that would mean going against her own personal code of getting together with your partner. She'd amended her code because she broke the original one: falling in love with your partner. She loved Elliot because of the life he led: he had a wonderful wife, four beautiful kids, he was a great detective, and he was an even greater man.

She shed her clothes and stepped into the spray. Before she could stop them, tears began to fall, and she couldn't control the ebb and flow of guilt that she felt.

She washed over her face and pulled herself together, soaped over her body quickly, and then turned off the shower. She grabbed her towel and dried off her body then began to brush out her hair to air it out.

She put on her robe and walked out of her bathroom. She was greeted with the smell of coffee and her macaroni and cheese. She furrowed her eyebrows and went into her kitchen. Elliot turned to her and shrugged.

"I raided your fridge," he said nonchalantly. "And I know you eat just about anything at anytime of day or night."

She smiled.

"I'm almost ready," she said. "Help yourself."

"I think I already did," he commented as he took a bite of macaroni.

Elliot fixed them both a plate while Olivia got dressed. He poured them a cup of coffee and fixed her cup the way she like it.

After accomplishing that task, he pulled out his cell phone and called Kathleen.

"Hi dad," she said drowsily.

"Hey, how did you know it was me?" He asked.

"Caller ID," she yawned. "Where are you?"

"The job called," he sighed. "Listen, I'm sorry I left you again…I-"

"It's okay dad," Kathleen sighed. "I think I'm starting to understand now. I'm old enough to take care of Dickie and Lizzie in the morning. Just be careful okay? We still need you even though we're getting older."

"I will," he sighed. "I love you. I love all of you."

"We love you too dad," Kathleen said. "Good morning."

"Good morning," he chuckled as he hung up.

A little while later, Olivia emerged from her bedroom smelling fresh and looking as such. She sat down at the table with Elliot and grinned a bit.

"This is good mac and cheese Liv," Elliot chuckled. "Olivia Benson, closet Martha."

"Shut up," she giggled. "It's my mother's recipe."

They both ate in comfortable silence.

When they both finished, Olivia gathered up the dishes and put them to soak in the dishwater before grabbing her coat and preparing to head out with Elliot. She could see him giving her that concerned look out of the corner of her eye.

Before he could say anything, she turned to him.

"I'm okay," she whispered. "Let's go."

1-6 Precinct

SVU Squad Room

5:45 AM

When Elliot and Olivia arrived, Cragen stepped out of his office.

"Liv, I heard about what happened," he said immediately. "Are you-"

"Captain, I'm okay," she said. "I can handle it."

Cragen looked to Elliot who nodded.

"Alright then," Cragen sighed. "Fin and Munch are at the apartments talking to the neighbors to try and find any links. Now, I've already put out a missing persons for India. Her picture is in circulation, and so is the baby boy's."

"Baby boy?" Olivia inquired.

"I followed the lead from the picture you found on Niklos Varlos's boat," Cragen explained. "The baby's name is Peter Varlos, he's Mindy Varlos's son."

"Well that's great," Elliot huffed. "They're both missing, so…"

Olivia rubbed her forehead and sat down at her desk. Cragen could tell that this case was taking a toll on her emotionally and physically. He knew that there was no way of convincing her to back off from the case because she was determined to find India. When Olivia was determined to do something, she went ahead and did it, regardless of the consequences.

"So we've got a missing baby, who's the child of a woman who seems to have vanished into thin air, and now India is out there with that maniac, and no other family to speak of," she ranted. "We don't even know where to start looking for this guy. Mindy has got to come forward or else we lose both India and baby Peter for good."

"Hey, hey, calm down," Elliot said softly. "We'll get him."

"How?" Olivia asked, feeling the stress and the tension all over her body.

Cragen shoved his hands into his pockets and sighed.

"Come on out Mindy," he called to his office, and both Elliot and Olivia looked up at him in confusion.

The timid young woman emerged from the office and sighed. She had a large bag over her shoulder and she was gripping a picture frame in her arms tightly.

"I can't run anymore," she said in a small voice.


	8. Chapter 8

Pure and Simple

Chapter Seven

1-6 Precinct

SVU Squad Room

6:05 AM Wednesday

Mindy took the coffee Elliot offered gratefully and sipped at it, hoping that it would wake her up. She'd been on edge and running from place to place all night, thinking while she was at it. Her shoulder was sore from lugging her bag around, and her arms had bruises on them from where she was carrying the picture frame of her family. The last thing she wanted was her dear brother's death and she feared for the life of her sister and her son.

Olivia came down from the loft with some yogurt and fruit. Mindy took some fruit gratefully and nodded her thanks.

"Mindy, I know that you're tired and scared," Olivia began softly, sitting down at her desk. "But we have to ask you a lot of questions. We'll try to get through them as quickly as possible so that you can go ahead and rest."

"You're welcome to use the ladies dressing room to freshen up and sleep in the crib," Cragen offered.

Mindy stared into her coffee.

"Will I be safe here?" She asked in her thick accent.

"Yes you will," Elliot assured Mindy. "Now, we need you to tell us about what happened at Hanson's Market on Saturday morning."

Mindy looked up at him with fear in her eyes.

"No, I can't," she said, shaking her head. "I came here because I need help finding my Peter. I don't care about-"

"Mindy," Olivia broke in. "The only way we're going to be able to help you is if you help us. We don't know anything about the people that took your baby. Now a little girl named India is missing, and we think it may be the same people. Mindy, we don't know where to start unless you tell us about what you saw at your store Saturday."

The woman sighed and looked away, mumbling something in Greek that neither the captain or the detectives could understand. Finally, Mindy conceded.

"Both Peter and my sister, Serena are missing," she began. "Here is a picture of us. The one with the longer, darker hair, that is my sister. And I know who took them, that is why I came here. The people that took my family and that little girl…they are after me."

"Who's after you Mindy?" Olivia asked.

The young woman began to cry and she got up and gathered her things.

"No, this is a mistake," she cried. "He'll know that I came to you and he'll kill me too unless I go back to him…"

Olivia felt herself getting frustrated and she stood up and put her hands on Mindy's shoulders.

"Mindy, we can't help you if you don't help us," she said firmly. "If you want to get your son back, then you need to tell us who is doing this so we can put them away so they can't hurt you anymore."

Mindy sighed and wiped her tears.

"When I first came to this country, I thought that I was going to be happy," she began, sitting back down. "Back in Greece I met a man there and he convinced me and my sister to move to America so that she could go to school and I could begin a career."

"What's his name Mindy?" Elliot asked.

"His name is Quentin Iberson," she explained. "I feel so stupid now for trusting him. He told me lies, so many lies. He made me work as a stripper and a cage girl in his night clubs. He was just using me for his own selfishness."

"Is Quentin Iberson the father of your baby?" Olivia asked.

"Yes," Mindy said, now full of anger. "He promised to protect me, he said that he loved me. The only reason I have Peter now is because he forced himself on me. He-he does horrible things to the women he hires. He forces them to take drugs, he forces them to work in his clubs, abandon their families. He knows that we have no place else to go if we don't do what he says."

"Tell us what happened Saturday afternoon at Hanson's Market," Cragen said.

Mindy sighed.

"It was a slow day," she began. "You know, a few people here, a few people there. I was stocking up when a young business man came barreling in, gathering up things and throwing them on the counter for me to ring up while he went to the restroom. Then, another man came in, and I wasn't paying much attention. He walked around the store and I paid him no mind still. Then he went to the restroom."

"The business man had tossed me his credit card and I swiped it for him, but it was declined, so I went to the back and knocked on the door. I heard crashing and the mirror breaking and grunting and groaning. So I pushed the door open and that's when I saw the other man's face."

"Who killed Greg Thomas, Mindy?" Elliot asked.

"In the Greek newspaper, we always have reports about Russia and Chechnya fighting," she explained. "Always something about the Russian mob…well anyway, there is a man who is a skilled assassin called 'The Hand' because he kills with his bare hands. His name is Dmitri Grotevsky."

"And would you be able to describe him to a forensic artist?" Cragen asked.

"No," Mindy said.

Before the detectives had time to be disappointed, she spoke up.

"I can lead you right to Quentin and Dmitri."

Quentin Iberson's Home

Saratoga

7:00 AM

India watched as the baby next to her in the oversized bed began to squeal and flail his arms and legs in the air. She didn't know anything about babies except that they were fragile and needed parents. She leaned in and rubbed the baby's belly, hoping that would soothe him.

She looked around the luxurious room. There were toys, a TV, some books scattered around the room, and there was a small lamp that illuminated only a small portion of the room. The baby continued to cry, and India didn't know what else to do for him.

She got up out of the bed and picked up a book and began to read it to the screaming baby.

"Shh," she whispered. "It's okay."

As she read, she heard footsteps down the hallway and she gasped. When the steps went past, she let out a sigh of relief. Just because India was just five years old, didn't mean that she wasn't a resourceful little girl. She always resolved that there had to be some place to hide, some idea to have, some place to go to always remain safe.

She didn't feel safe around the man that had taken her away from her grandmother. She wished that Olivia would come for her and keep her safe.

The baby had stopped crying and now he was about to go to sleep.

India just knew that there had to be a phone somewhere.

1-6 Precinct

SVU Squad Room

8:00 AM

Elliot rubbed the back of his neck to relieve some of the tension as he walked back to the squad room. He had just taken some aspirin and downed a bottle of water in hopes that his tension headache would go away. The precinct buzzed with a flurry of people going in and out, shuffling paperwork, and of course answering phones that were ringing off the hook. All at eight in the morning.

As he walked, he noticed someone familiar sitting in one of the waiting rooms.

"Maureen?" He asked.

She turned, and her eyes registered that of surprise and of being caught.

"Dad," she said, smiling nervously. "Hey."

"Hey, what are you doing here? Don't you have class?" Elliot asked his daughter.

"Oh, yeah, our professor cancelled," she explained.

"Okay, but that still doesn't answer the question as to why you're here," he said, getting worried. "Did something happen? Are you okay?"

"Dad, I'm fine," she insisted. "I just brought my friend here to file a harassment complaint."

Elliot felt the tension in his neck and shoulders all over again as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"In the narcotics division?" He asked.

Before Maureen could get anything else out, Chris called her name.

"Maureen what are-" he stopped when he saw Elliot. "Oh my God. Mr. Stabler."

Elliot looked between the two of them, and he felt like he was going to completely go insane.

"You're a detective?" He asked Chris almost too quietly.

"Yes sir," Chris answered, looking down at his feet. "I transferred to the narcotics division six months ago."

Elliot nodded.

"Okay," he said before turning and walking away.

"Dad, don't do this," Maureen called. "Dad!"

Elliot walked into the squad room in a furry, ignoring Olivia's inquiry and sitting at his desk, rubbing his forehead.

"Elliot," Olivia tried again. "What the hell is going on with you?"

"I just found out that Chris, the man that's about to marry my daughter in a month, is a detective in the narcotics division," he chuckled bitterly. "In the same precinct. I feel like I'm in a fucking bad sitcom with people waiting for it to get funny."

Olivia just stared at him.

"Why are you so calm about this?" He asked, taking deep breaths to relieve the tight feeling in his chest.

"Well for one, I'm starting to understand why Maureen didn't tell you," she began, crossing her arms over her chest. "And two, that is so low on our priority scale right now."

Elliot sighed.

"Alright," he conceded. "You're right. I'm sorry."

Just then, Munch and Fin walked into the squad room.

"Cragen called us, he said that you have Mindy Varlos here," Fin said as he sat down at his desk.

"Yeah, she's getting freshened up," Elliot said, calming down a little more.

"So, what'd she give us?" Munch asked.

"Well, we have two main characters," Olivia explained looking through her notes. "A Quentin Iberson, and a Dmitri Grotevsky."

Fin stood up.

"Quentin Iberson?" He asked. "I remember that name."

"From where?" Olivia asked.

"Me and a couple of other guys down in Narc meet once a month to unload," he began. "We toss names around and remember old cases that really got to us. The last time one of my good friends mentioned Quentin Iberson. He said that he's one of the worst domestic traffickers he's ever seen. He's got it all: night clubs, a partnership in a shipping company, and former officers from INS to smuggle in his women. Before they can catch him, the guy makes everything look legit while he's sitting in jail. One phone call does a lot for the bastard."

Cragen came out of his office.

"I ran Quentin Iberson's name through the system," he announced. "He has several complaints filed against his for domestic violence and harassment, but the charges were dropped when the women who filed them either pulled the plug or up and disappeared."

"Sounds like a real prince this guy," Olivia huffed. "Is there anything about child abuse, attempted kidnapping?"

"Nope, nothing," Cragen said. "Look, I'm bringing Narc in on this before they get wind and get territorial. If Mindy can lead us to him, she'll lead us to India the baby, and the drugs. She'll bust this thing wide open."

"That's only if she's willing to cooperate," Elliot said.

"Still, what is the connection?" Munch asked. "I mean, from brutal murders to abducting children?"

Olivia began pacing.

"I'm no psychologist, but, maybe we've been looking at this the wrong way," she said. "What if this isn't about the drugs? I mean, yeah Sherona Anderson and Greg Thomas were carrying the drugs on them, but I don't think they were mules. I'm thinking that this is about taking back something…possession even."

"How did you come to that conclusion?" Cragen asked.

Olivia sighed.

"I don't know, it's just a thought," she said before leaving the room.


	9. Chapter 9

Pure and Simple

Chapter Eight

**1-6 Precinct **

**SVU Squad Room**

**10:30 AM**

"Everyone, I want you to meet Detectives Chris Johnson and Turner Buckley, from Narcotics," Cragen introduced.

Elliot had a look of frustration as Chris avoided eye contact with him. Olivia elbowed him and the tension didn't go unnoticed by Cragen.

"Is there something I should know about detectives?" He asked.

"No, sir," Elliot said as he shook the other detectives hand. "Elliot Stabler."

"How ya doing," Buckley greeted him before turning to Olivia. He was instantly attracted to the woman, and he wasn't that good with hiding his feelings. "Hi."

"Hi, Detective Olivia Benson," she said, shaking his hand firmly.

"Yeah, I've heard a lot about you," he chuckled. "Tough lady."

"Uh, thanks," Olivia said, turning to Chris. "Hey."

"Hello Ms. Benson," Chris waved nervously.

"Anyway," Cragen continued, confused at how subtle everyone was being. "You'll be working together to bring this Quentin Iberson down. Let's get down to business shall we?"

"Uh, yeah," Chris began, opening up a file. "Quentin Iberson. Apparently, Narc's been after this guy for about five years or so. Buckley and I heard about the little girl and they tossed it to us to handle. This guy has his hand in everything from drugs to underground gambling."

"And now he's got his hands on a Russian assassin out to do his dirty work," Elliot said.

**11:45 PM**

The detectives sat in one of the conference rooms with a pile of files and Mindy. She had gotten a little rest and she was prepared to divulge everything about her former boyfriend.

"Okay Mindy, go ahead," Cragen said.

Mindy sighed and looked at Olivia, who nodded at her, indicating that she would be alright.

"Quentin has many interests," she began. "Business, gambling, sports, cars. Everything. He can have anything he wants with the right amount of money. When I met him, I didn't know how much of a monster he was until I was trapped with no money, no skills, and no job. He promised me that he'd put me in school, but it never came to pass for me."

"He forced me to work in his clubs as a stripper and a prostitute," she lowered her head and began to cry. "He made me take drugs so I can work long hours for his benefit. He treated me like I was nothing and I tried to get out, but he abused me and said he would kill me if I ever left. One night he was drunk and high and he raped me. I ran away from him when I found out I was pregnant with Peter," she wiped her tears. "I knew I had to get out for my baby's sake. Quentin hasn't bothered me until now."

"Tell us about the drugs Mindy," Chris asked.

"Ah, the drugs," she sniffled. "Well, he hands out the cocaine at his clubs mostly. But he deals with all the major drugs out of his home in some city. Uh, Sara-Sara or Tome, or Toga something."

"Saratoga?" Olivia asked. "He has a home in Saratoga?"

"Yes," Mindy said. "The only way I can ever have hope of getting my Peter back and the little girl is if I go back to him. I'm prepared to do that, even if it costs me my life. I'm sick of running, and I just want to live my life."

"Mindy, you don't have to do this," Cragen said. "Just your account alone can-"

"No, you don't understand," Mindy said firmly. "I have to because I'm his favorite. Despite me running away, he trusts me. He loves me above any other girl. If you all go after him, he'll just run and he can make himself almost like he does not live at all. If that happens, there will be no way of getting the children back."

The sun shone brightly in the room, and dust hovered in the air and collected on the cherry wood business table and on the fake, tacky ficus nestled in the corner of the room.

"What does India Anderson have to do with all this?" Elliot asked.

"Quentin has many children," Mindy said. "He has about three more children all by different mothers. He supports them with his money. Some more than others."

"What about this Dmitri Grotevsky?" Cragen asked.

"I know nothing beyond what he's done to try and get to me," Mindy said. "I have to go back to Quentin."


	10. Chapter 10

Pure and Simple

Chapter Nine

**Snake Eyes Bar & Entertainment**

**Times Square**

**7:30 PM Thursday**

Olivia sighed and looked over Mindy. The van was an awfully cramped space when one had to change clothes and get into character. Mindy was a very shy girl, and it took a lot to convince her to go back to Quentin with a wire on. Olivia told her that it was the only way she would be able to find Peter and India.

"You'll be okay Mindy," Olivia said. "I promise you that we'll take care of you okay?"

Mindy nodded.

Mindy wore a short dress that stopped above midthigh, a halter top, and her hair was pulled back into a tight bun with a long hair extension flowing down her back. Her makeup was glittery and light and she had on long boots.

Olivia adjusted the brooch which was really a camera on her blouse to make sure that it stayed put. She sighed and looked over to a fearful Mindy.

"Ready?"

Mindy nodded.

"Okay guys, Mindy's coming in," Olivia said as she opened the van, which was sitting around the corner from the club. "She's making her way down now."

Mindy looked back at Olivia as she walked around the corner.

"You're okay Mindy," she assured her again. "Everyone's looking out for you," she said. "Detective Johnson is at the stage where the cage girls are, Detective Stabler is at the bar, and Cragen is near the men's restroom. We'll take care of you."

Mindy nodded as she walked around the corner to the bar.

The club was smoky, but not so much that it wouldn't be enjoyable to come to if it weren't for all the illegal activity that went on behind the scenes. The music was playing loudly, and the songs were all sexual in nature, the bar was busy, and of course, there were women serving the men at tables. There was a sizable stage in the middle of the two story club with two closed off areas or cages where the girls who were serving or either dancers period undulated around or hung onto a pole dancing.

Buckley opened up the van and got in with Olivia.

"Hey," he said. "Is she all set?"

"Yeah," Olivia sighed. "She's scared to death, though. I hope she'll be able to pull herself together by the time she gets to Quentin."

Inside, Elliot watched as Mindy entered. He kept his eyes on her as she walked to confront the man who was making her life a living hell.

Mindy could see that Quentin spotted her, and he had sent down one of his body guards to let her up. The brawny man approached her and took her by the arm. Mindy was hesitant, but she decided it would be best not to struggle now and save her energy for later. She wished that Olivia was with her, but Olivia explained that Quentin would be able to tell that she was a cop right off.

Instead of fear, she focused on her son and how grateful she would be to God when she had him back in her arms again and she could already see her sister's smile. She prayed that Serena, Peter, and India were alright. Quentin wouldn't, couldn't hurt them…not if she was back with him.

Mindy felt the fear in her heart as they walked through the doors of the loft.

Quentin stood up and greeted his favorite girl.

"Melinda," he said with a smug grin creeping across his face. "I knew it was only a matter of time before you came back to me," he paused to caress over her cheek. "I told you that you're my favorite. That's never going to change."

Mindy sighed and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I know that now, and I am sorry," she said before she kissed him deeply.

The other two jealous women got up and walked out of the loft.

He pulled away and squeezed Mindy's bottom. "Mm, I've missed you baby."

Mindy smiled as she buried her face into his chest.

"I am sorry," she said again.

"Hey, no more apologies," Quentin said a little too softly, even for him. "Now we can be a family. Peter is going to have all this one day."

"A family," Mindy repeated, trying to sound genuine.

"Yeah," Quentin sighed as he took out a knife and pressed the point into Mindy's belly, causing her to gasp. "And I think it's time for us to get out of here."

"Yes," Mindy agreed.

He ripped the wire from her blouse and cut the wiring, causing Olivia to panic outside.

"Guys, he made her!" She said.

Elliot watched as Mindy came out of the elevator with Quentin. He was taking her down the hallway past Cragen. Elliot walked out of the club to meet Olivia at the van because he knew that she was ready to do something stupid.

Mindy was too frightened to do or say anything that was contrary to what Quentin wanted. She had no idea how to defend herself, and if she wanted to see her baby boy again, she had to cooperate.

Outside, Olivia took the keys for Buckley's Sedan and went over to the car.

"Benson, you have to wait," Buckley said. "Benson."

"Shut up Buckley," Olivia snipped. "I'll be damned before I let that bastard hurt anyone else."

"Shit!" Buckley grumbled as he got into contact with Munch and Fin.

Just as Olivia climbed inside the Sedan, Elliot was making his way down the street.

"Liv! Wait," he said as he caught up with her. "If you're going to do something stupid, at least make sure I'm a part of it."

**Pier 17 **

_**The Onyx**_

**8:50 PM**

The ride from Snake Eyes to Quentin's huge boathouse at the pier was filled with tension as he sped through the streets. Mindy didn't dare utter a word as he kept driving. She could only hope that Olivia would help her. The last thing Mindy wanted was to die. She didn't want her son and her sister to be alone in the world.

Serena was still yet young, too young to be trying to take care of a baby with no skills and no degree from high school. She and Peter would be homeless without her. And Poor India already lost people she loved at the hands of the man she thought she loved some time ago.

Her anger burned at her cheeks.

"You monster," Mindy hissed and he looked at her and slapped her.

"Shut up bitch!" He yelled. "I own you! You belong to me and you're going to do whatever I say! You're dumb, you're ugly, and too skinny, and no one loves you. Only I ever loved you. So don't you ever talk to me like that again!"

With that, he slapped her again and she felt the blood on her lip.

They made it to his boat house and he pulled her violently out of the car and pushed her.

He was unaware that Olivia and Elliot had followed him to the pier.

They parked their Sedan quite a distance back, and they ran down the pier.

"That must be his car," Olivia observed.

"I see lights," Elliot said. "He's on the boat."

"I'll look for the kids, you distract Quentin," Olivia said. "Be careful."

Elliot looked at her.

"Don't try to be superwoman," he said before they went up to the houseboat.

Inside, Quentin made Mindy sit down.

"I did love you very much," he said, pouring himself a drink. "But when you left me, you hurt me."

Mindy began to cry and shiver from the chill.

"Quentin, you've hurt me," she cried. "You abused me. I've learned that is not love!"

"Shut up!" He yelled.

He grabbed his gun and pointed it at her. He walked up to her and pressed the barrel into her forehead.

"If you think I'm going to let you ruin everything I've built, you're wrong," he said. "Sacrifices have to be made. Don't worry, I'll take good care of my son and your sister? Well, she's a pretty girl. I think she'll do just fine."

"What about India?" Mindy asked.

"She's going to be paying for the sins of her mother," he said in a cool tone of voice. "Stand up."

Mindy stood up.

"Bitch," he spat as he was about to kill her.

"Put it down, Iberson," Elliot said in a tense voice, entering the vessel. "Put the gun down and let her go."

Quentin turned around.

"Who the fuck are you?" He asked angrily.

"I'm a detective," Elliot said. "Now, put the gun down. You're caught and back up will be arriving at any moment. I don't want to kill you."

"Yeah you do," Quentin said, training the gun on Elliot instead of Mindy. "All the horrible things I've done…you don't want to even take a practice shot?"

"Don't make me do that," Elliot advised. "My partner is going to find those children, Mindy already told us everything. It's over Quentin you don't want to make things worse than they already are."

Quentin chuckled.

"You cops!" He laughed. "You always try and identify. You have no fucking idea how much I have to lose! I've got to protect me and my own, man. I've got to protect my business just like you've got to protect that hot ass partner of yours. Detective Olivia Benson, is it?"

Elliot felt his heart skip a beat at the mention of his partner's name. How did Quentin know about her?

"She's a beautiful woman," Quentin said, still aiming at Elliot. "Such a pretty face. I'd hate to see her hurt in any way."

"This isn't about her," Elliot said, trying not to show his fear for his partner's welfare. "This is about me and you right here right now."

While Elliot was talking down Quentin, Olivia managed to get a portside door open and she found herself on the right deck with the staterooms. She made her way quietly through the hallway, which was dimly lit. The doors to all the rooms were open, and she peeked in all of them as she went by, trying to look for any signs of children.

Then she heard a baby's cry; from under her.

"Oh my God," she breathed as she opened up a hatch in the floor that led to the hull. Inside, Serena was holding on to Peter tightly and India sleeping on her shoulder.

"Who are you?" Serena asked.

"I'm Olivia Benson," Olivia introduced herself. "I'm going to get you out of here okay?"

Serena said nothing, and she wore a look of shock on her face.

"Serena?" Olivia inquired.

Dmitri grabbed Olivia from behind by her hair and threw her against the wall, knocking off various pictures.

"Ah!" Olivia exhaled in sudden pain in her back.

Dmitri smacked her across her face and she fell to the floor.

Quentin could here the commotion below and he smiled.

"Looks like Dmitri found your partner," he said.

Elliot held his stance, not wanting to let Quentin out of his sight.

Mindy couldn't stand just sitting down and doing nothing to help the people that were trying to help her, and she wanted her family.

She stood up slowly, anger in her eyes, and despite her small, frail body, she tackled Quentin from behind and bit his ear as hard as she could.

He screamed in pain. Mindy clawed, bit, and kicked at Quentin and Elliot tried to get his gun away from him, but his grip was strong and persistent. He fought Elliot off and backed himself and Mindy into a wall, causing her to yelp. Before anyone could react, Quentin turned and shot Mindy out the window, and she fell overboard into the water.

Elliot moved to grab his gun again, but Quentin pressed the barrel against his head.

Meanwhile, Olivia was still fighting off Dmitri. She proved to be a little too quick for him as she ducked into a stateroom. He grabbed her by her neck and pushed her onto her back. He began choking her and she felt dizzy. She didn't think about grabbing her gun out of its holster because she was surprised by his attack. But she was pinned under his brawny weight and she couldn't reach her gun.

Serena managed to get out of the hull and she put India and the baby into a closet in another room and closed the door. She grabbed a decorative weight sitting on one of the many end tables and she entered the room where Olivia was pinned. She knocked Dmitri over his head and he loosened his grip on Olivia's neck. It was then that Olivia managed to kick him off of her and Serena assaulted him repeatedly with the weight. He turned and punched her, getting off of a panting Olivia.

She pulled her gun and fired as he lunged back at her.

Quentin turned at the shots being fired and Elliot seized the opportunity to jump Quentin. The men struggled for a long moment before Quentin knocked the wind out of Elliot and he lunged after his dropped gun. Elliot was faster, and before he gave it a second thought, he shot.

It was then he heard approaching sirens, and when Quentin fell to the ground, shot dead, Elliot sighed and got up, his body aching from the struggle.

"Now you guys get here," he panted.

"El?"

He turned and saw Olivia, who had nasty bruises on her cheek and her neck.

"You alright?" She asked, as Serena emerged with Peter and India.

"Yeah," he said. "You?"

"Fine," she said as the rest of their squad and other unis stormed the houseboat. "Where's Mindy?"

Elliot only shook his head.

Cragen walked in with a look of anger on his face.

"Good work you two," he said as a couple of unis escorted Serena and the children off the boat. "But tomorrow morning, it's your asses."

"Yes sir," Elliot said.

"Liv, you go get checked out," Cragen said.

Elliot walked out with her.

"Serena!" A voice called out. "Peter!"

It was a soaking wet and shivering Mindy.


	11. Chapter 11

Pure and Simple

Chapter Ten

**Bellevue Hospital**

**10:45 PM**

Olivia sighed as she placed the icepack on her aching and bruised cheek. She sat back on the bed the hospital had provided her and pulled the blanket over herself to warm up. The flimsy piece of fabric the hospital liked to call a gown was hardly enough for her tall stature, and she asked Elliot to bring her some clothes since CSU needed her other clothes for evidence.

The doctor just prescribed her some aspirin for her headache and pains in her wrists and cheek. She had bruises on her neck from where Dmitri placed his hand and tried to choke her. Elliot was so worried about her, but she insisted that she was alright and she told him to go get her some clothes.

Just when she was about to give up hope on getting something decent to wear so she could go check up on India, Peter, and Mindy, Elliot emerged, bearing a pair of jeans and a tee shirt.

"Thanks," she sighed, tossing the icepack to the end of her bed and throwing off the covers.

She took her jeans and pulled them on under her gown and she stopped and looked at Elliot.

"A little privacy please?" She asked.

"Oh, right, sorry," he said, going outside the curtain.

She took off her gown and pulled on her tee shirt. She looked at the words. It read 'Sweet and Sour' across her bosom, and she groaned.

Elliot paced outside the curtains waiting on her.

She pulled the curtains back with an agitated look on her face.

"What?" He asked.

"You couldn't find a more appropriate shirt?" She asked, pointing to her title.

"Oh, sorry," he sighed. "Wasn't thinking. Besides, I pulled that off your sofa."

Olivia shook her head as she pulled on the jacket he brought her.

"How's everyone doing?" She asked.

"Mindy, Serena, and the baby are fine," he reported. "India's with a social worker."

Olivia breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm so glad we got to them," she said as they walked down to the lobby.

He embraced her and pressed his lips to her forehead and sighed into her hair.

"I'm so glad that you're okay," he whispered.

"I'm glad you're alright too," she whispered back and she leaned in and kissed him softly.

They parted and looked into each other's eyes.

"Olivia," Cragen called, approaching. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, captain, I'm fine," she sighed, pulling away from Elliot slowly, not wanting to leave her comfort. "I'm a little sore, but I'll manage."

"Good," he said, looking to Elliot. "I'm not saying I condone your little stunt, but I'm saying good work anyway. Consider it water under the bridge."

"Thanks," Elliot said. "Can we go check up on Mindy and the kids?"

"Yeah," Cragen said.

**Room 134**

**11:12 PM**

Olivia and Elliot knocked on Mindy's door. She looked up from nursing her son and she smiled and waved them in. Serena was sitting in the chair next to her older sister.

Elliot opened up the door and allowed Olivia to walk in first before he did and he closed the door softly.

Mindy and Serena were just fine. When Quentin shot Mindy, the bullet only grazed her shoulder, and Serena just had a nasty bump on her head from the blow Dmitri delivered. All in all, the sisters were going to make full recoveries.

"Hello," Mindy said softly. "Oh, look at my greedy little piglet," she giggled as she unlatched Peter from her bosom and fixed herself up and burped him. "Thank you, for everything detectives."

"You're more than welcome Mindy," Olivia said with a small smile. "How's the baby?"

"He is fine, he is beautiful," she smiled.

Serena smiled.

"My sister and I are grateful to you," she said. "I'm glad that you got the man that murdered our Niklos."

Olivia sighed, not wanting to ruin their happiness, but they had a right to know.

"Mindy, Serena," she began slowly. "Quentin is dead, and so is Dmitri. They won't hurt you anymore."

Mindy sighed in relief.

"We are safe now," she sighed, looking down at a sleeping Peter.

After their visit with Mindy and Serena, Elliot and Olivia headed down to the lobby of the hospital where India was sitting somberly with her social worker. She had a book in her hand, but she wasn't reading it, and the little girl was still in her night gown.

Olivia sighed at how sad the little girl was, and she hoped that she could give her some comfort.

"Hi India," she greeted, and India looked up, a bright smile creeping across her face.

"Olivia!" India exclaimed and she ran up and hugged her.

"How are you doing sweet pea?" Olivia asked, picking up the little girl.

"Okay I guess," India said. "Where's mommy and grandma?"

Olivia set India onto the ground again and took her hand and sat down.

"India," she began softly. "I have to explain about your mommy and Nana. Something really bad happened to them, and uh…"

"They're in Heaven, aren't they?" India asked in a small voice.

"Yeah baby," Olivia said, on the verge of tears. "But you know what? They're watching you, and they still love you very much."

India hugged Olivia tightly.

**1-6 Precinct**

**SVU Squad Room**

**12:40 AM**

Elliot walked into the crib and saw Olivia lying on one of the many bunks. He heard her sniffling as he approached her. He smoothed over her hair and she turned to him.

"Hey, you okay?" He asked, sitting next to her.

"A little girl has no family and now she's going to be in the system," Olivia sighed. "How do you think I feel?"

"Liv, they found a relative," he reported, placing a hand on her abdomen. "Sherona's father."

Olivia sniffled and looked away.

"Hopefully she's in good hands," she said before wiping her tears. "I didn't want you to see me like this El…"

"Like what?" He asked. "Like the caring, compassionate, emotional human being that you are? You can't be strong all the time, Liv. If this is going to work, we have to see each other…like this."

Olivia sighed and leaned up and kissed him.

She pulled away and sighed and laid back down on the bunk. She pulled him gently to her and they kissed passionately. They completely forgot that they were at the station, that it was in the middle of the night, and that they had just solved the most dangerous case to date. None of it mattered because they needed each other like this.

While nothing happened beyond just the kissing, neither one of them had ever felt more comfort before in a kiss, and it opened so many places in their hearts.

Later, they walked into the squad room where everyone had convened. They let their hands drop as soon as they left the comfort and privacy of the crib. Maureen was talking to Chris and Munch, Fin, Buckley and Cragen were preparing to go out for some breakfast.

"Elliot, Liv, wanna join us for some breakfast?" Fin asked.

"Yeah," Olivia said. "Let me just get my things.

Elliot went over to Maureen and Chris.

She looked shyly at her father, afraid of what he would say to her about hiding the fact that Chris was a detective.

"Hi dad," she said softly. "I'm sorry for not telling you the truth."

"It's okay baby," he said, pulling her into a hug. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay dad," she sighed.

Elliot looked up at Chris, who smiled nervously.

Elliot held his hand out and Chris shook it firmly.

"Thanks Mr. Stabler," he said.

"You're a damn good Detective," Elliot commented.

Olivia smiled. She knew that he would come around, and she knew that Kathy would be able to cross that off of her list of worries.

All the detectives headed off together, thankful for another day they could spend among the living.


	12. Chapter 12

Pure and Simple

Epilogue

**Three Weeks Later**

**Stabler Residence**

**Queens**

**4:30 PM Saturday**

Elliot took down some bowls for himself, Olivia, and the twins so that they could make sundaes. Lizzie and Dickie had practically tag teamed him over the ice cream, and he gave in, despite Kathy's orders that they wouldn't be allowed to partake in anything remotely fun because of their slipping grades. Yet somehow, the twins managed to wear him down, and they had been studying and making up their assignments for most of the day, so he went to the store and bought stuff for ice cream. And ordered pizza.

"Okay, if either of you let this slip," Elliot began to warn, but couldn't think of anything else to add. "Yeah, whatever."

Olivia just looked at him and he shrugged.

"Okay, who wants the Double Chocolate Chip?" He asked.

"I do," Dickie announced. "With tons of nuts and fudge."

Lizzie and Olivia opened up the vanilla and scooped some into their bowls.

"While you're over there making girlie sundaes, dad and I are going to make the ultimate sundaes," Dickie teased. "These are going to be like…Super Bowl Sunday sundaes."

"Yeah and you two are going to be too full for the pizza when it comes," Olivia said. "It's all about portion control, which unfortunately, your dad has none of."

It was nice to spend a Saturday off with Elliot and his kids. Olivia loved being around the twins because they were so much fun and they were hilarious when they were together. She'd been manipulated in several board games with them, and they also told her that The Game of Life was a horoscope in disguise. When she ended up unmarried with no children, retiring in a condo, and broke, she believed them.

Elliot warned her about his twins' antics.

Maureen's wedding was next Saturday at her church, and she and her mother had been frantically running around the city getting everything together and making sure everything was alright with her wedding dress. Elliot took Chris out with Munch, Cragen, and Fin one night to "bond." The women knew better.

All in all, nothing could persuade the young couple from not getting married now. They were both brimming with excitement, and Maureen was glowing. Elliot thought he would have a heart attack at any moment as the day drew closer and closer.

The twins talked animatedly about what happened at school and Olivia listened with plenty of interest, feeling as if she had been assimilated into the family. She loved that feeling, and she felt that it would make the transition with her relationship with Elliot that much easier because they didn't have to sugar coat anything.

The pizza arrived just as they were finishing their sundaes and the twins, who seemed to be in a constant state of hunger, immediately began to pick up pieces of pizza.

After everyone was completely full, the twins fell asleep on _The Sound of Music_ leaving Elliot and Olivia to finish the film.

They looked at each other and smiled.

"So, now what?" He asked.

"I don't know," Olivia sighed quietly. "Just one day at a time I guess."

Elliot nodded, looking at the paling bruise on her neck, battle scars, and he knew that everyday wasn't promised to them.

"Yeah, that sounds okay," he said, and she smiled.

**End**


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